Destiny Is Unspoken
by AceyMarshmallow
Summary: "Who slipped something in my drink last night?" Getting taken away from the average world and dumped into the world of D. Gray-Man is not possible. It just doesn't happen. And yet it happened anyway. Not only do I have to survive - as well as fight - this war, but I also have to figure out how to save and change the storyline for the better. How do I do that? LaviXOC
1. A New World

**A/N: Hi~ welcome to my first (actual) story here (woohooo!) Feedback telling me how I did is very appreciated ;) This is mainly going to be from the OC's point of view, so I apologize if you're not into OC stories :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the plot, characters, dialogue, setting etc. of D. Gray-Man, it all belongs to Katsura Hoshino, I only own my OC. ****This disclaimer applies to all chapters that are posted in the future.**

* * *

You know that split feeling you get in some situations? Like when you _really_ feel like getting a bucket of ice cream and eating the whole thing by yourself, but _know_ it will most likely not end well? Well, it's that kind of situation I was currently finding myself in.

"S-sorry…?" I mumbled, pausing the music on my iPod and pulling off my headphones, my mind exploding with thoughts, yet blank at the same time.

I continued to just stare at the cloaked man, the thought of the entire situation being a dream crossing my mind. I mean who in the bloody hell comes across a man hiding under a black cloak in the middle of the forest, in the twenty-first century? I _also_ would like to point out that this is Denmark, _the_ most boring, normal country in the world with a murder rate at 25 people pr. year.

Which is why I refused to believe that what was currently happening was not real.

"Your name is Annabella Cathrine Morrison, correct?" It was a dark, rough voice coming from the person underneath the cloak, pretty obviously a man. There was a slight accent in his English that I couldn't quite put a finger on…

I simply nodded in answer to the question, not even bothering to ask how in the hell he kew what my name was. _All I wanted was to take a walk in the forest, and then this happens…_

"Do you wish for a more exciting life?"

Okay, so basically what just happened was this: I was out walking by myself in the forest, minding my own boring business, as I suddenly realized this creepy-looking hoodie-man was standing and watching me in-between some of the trees (_not gonna lie, I nearly had a heart-attack)_. So I tried to ignore him, turned the other way and went back the same way I came… that was what I should have done at least. Curiosity getting the better of me, I ended up just standing in the middle of the small path having an extremely awkward staring contest with the dude (I obviously wasn't able so see his eyes – but oh well…).

Eventually it got a bit too weird and uncomfortable for me, meaning I turned around to walk away – only the guy was suddenly standing right in front of me (teleporting bastard! I pretty obviously screamed – who wouldn't, right?).

At this point I was about ready to either go in total flee-mode and sprint the opposite direction, or just freaking tackle the guy, hopefully remembering some of the techniques I learned a few years back when I did martial arts (karate to be exact).

And that's when he asked if I wanted to leave this boring world behind and go live in the world of D. Gray-man as an exorcist – literally not joking!

Usually I would have started laughing if somebody asked me that, but I was too stunned to do anything.

"Do you?" The cloaked man asked again, cocking his head to the side and ripping me out of my own hurricane of thoughts. Okay, I get it. There are two different people in this kind of situation: the rational person that just turns and walks away, and the stupid person that immediately yells, "Yes!" and then hugs the guy or something. Not gonna lie, usually I would be the second one (the stupid one) and just go with the flow, but this time, the teeny tiny rational part of my mind was telling me that this was just too weird_ – _and I should probably leave.

But I couldn't.

That's where my stupid and naïve brain-part comes into action and says, "what if he is serious…?" _What if he is serious?_ Those five words kept playing over and over in my mind like a broken cd player.

Let me tell you a little secret – I love Anime (surprise right?). And above that I absolutely love D. Gray-Man, and I cannot count how many times I have asked myself _the_ exact same question Mr. Cloak-dude just asked me. _What if I could escape this world and be an exorcist?_

And just before y'all start jumping to conclusions about me having had a terrible life, never knowing my parents and living with abusive foster parents that hit me all the time and tried to starve me to death – I'm gonna have to say NO! I had not had a terrible life, okay? I had had a perfectly normal life, with loving parents, a cute younger sister, friends, school, sports and so on.

But that was the problem. I _didn't _want to live a normal life. I didn't feel like growing up and working in an office – heck, I was already fed up with school and I was only 17! Which is why I loved watching anime, reading manga and fictional books. They allowed me to live that life through fantasy.

But _now_, this cloaked weirdo had suddenly appeared, babbling on about sending me into a fictional universe (logic, please?).

"Yes." I suddenly answered his question, surprising myself. _Well all right then._ The atmosphere around the cloaked man suddenly changes into a somewhat satisfied energy, and something told me that if I could see his face, he would be grinning.

"I can give you that."

At this point I had just decided to say screw logic and play along. My curiosity had gotten the better of me and I could already feel my hopes jumping sky-high. _Calm down. Think this through._

"What's the catch?" I asked, trying to look as serious as possible.

"Catch?" He repeated, cocking his cloaked head to the side. I definitely detected an eerie grin in his voice.

"There is always a catch to stuff like this." _Trust me, I have watched enough movies and read enough books to know._ Mr. cloak-dude simply laughed.

"It's a simple offer. Take it or leave it."

There was something about his voice – his words – that just sounded so…convincing. I couldn't quite put a finger to it.

"Why do you ask _me_ this?" That's actually a pretty good question, Bella. I was as boringly ordinary as any other average teenage girl on this planet. The guy simply laughed again, seeming to be pulling something out from underneath his dark cloak. Following the movement very carefully with my blue eyes, I ended up gasping a bit too loud at the object in his outstretched hands. Two Japanese war fans.

I grabbed one of them from his hands, inspecting it thoroughly.

The outer cover was made of completely black-shining metal as well as the ribs. The lacquered paper running over the ribs was white, almost silver-looking, and had a black plant-like design across it. I knew for a fact that the other fan was the exact same. Why did I know this?

Because I was the one who created them.

Technically I guess. I used to draw sketches of how I wanted _my_ Innocence (or Anti-Akuma weapon) to look like, just for the fun of it (though it was some pretty damn detailed sketches.)

"How did you…?" I began, but stopped myself, as I didn't know how to finish the sentence. I never showed those sketches to anyone; accept for my two best friends Ingrid and Karen.

"The _real_ question is; do you accept my offer?" Mr. cloak-dude chuckled, stretching forth his hands with the other fan; offering me to take both the fan and what is to follow.

…

_You know what? Screw logic._

Having made up my mind, I grabbed the other fan quickly, as if my life depended on it. And then my surroundings disappeared into a vortex of blackness…

Only for a few minutes though (which I of course spend having a major heart attack). Just like my previous surroundings disappeared; new surroundings slowly began to take form around me, first starting as a blur, but then gradually clearing out.

"What…?" I whispered, feeling as if all of the air in my lungs were just punched out. I was sitting in the middle of a blind alley, on some pretty damn cold rocks. Behind me, people were buzzing back and forth the alley, not even noticing my presence in the slightest. Also, the people here were wearing some really old-styled clothes; the women wearing long dresses and most of the men were wearing black suits and hats. _What!?_ It also smelled kind of weird here.

"Where am I…?" I murmured softly, getting up from the cold ground and dusting off my pants. Besides from a slight headache, I felt just fine. For some reason, I had managed to hold a tight grip around the two fans I got from–"

"Oh shit – Hey cloak man!" I yelled, feeling myself slowly start to panic. _Did he just leave me?_

"You know where you are, Annabella." I heard his raspy voice say, making me instantly turn around to find him standing a little further down the closed part of the alley. I felt myself calm down.

"Am I seriously…? I mean did you…?" I fumbled a bit around with the words, getting more and more frustrated with myself. "No way did you just send me into the universe of D. Gray-Man! It's fictional! Isn't it…?"

I didn't even know anymore. I was seriously and utterly confused. _Unless..._ was it possible to knock a person out, drag them to some foreign, odd-smelling place, and then have the whole population dress as if they were from the... uh... I don't know, I was never good at history! To have the whole population dress as if they _weren't_ from the twenty-first century - only to mess around with some random teenage girl?

"Why don't you let 'that' answer your question?" Mr. cloak-dude suggested, nodding his hidden face toward the fans in my hands.

As if on cue, a soft green light shot out from both fans, illuminating the dark alley for a few seconds before dying down again. _The heck…?_ Come to think of it, I had been feeling some kind of warm, almost alive, sensation from the fans ever since I got here. _No way…_

"Am I seriously in the D. Gray-man universe right now." I whispered. _How on earth is that even possible? I mean, it's a fictional story for pete's sake!_ Instead of answering my question, the cloaked man threw a bag toward me, landing right by my feet.

"I thought you might want some of your personal belongings with you."

Squatting down and zipping the large bag open, I saw to my surprise most of my clothes and toiletry in it. He even put in a small wallet with some (hopefully) 19th century British pound for me to use.

"Just remember, this weapon is solely made from your memories. It is made out of your own ideas on how you have always wanted it to function. Look deep inside your mind and remember what your own thoughts were of this Innocence. Now, I transported you to the center of London," the guy explained, while I continued to look through the bag: trousers, shorts, skirts, shirts, t-shirts, pajamas, socks, panties and bras (_seriously? pervert_), my favorite book, my sketchbook, necessary toiletries (as well as tampons…_awkward, reeeal awkward_) – he seriously remembered everything! Finally, lying in a small envelope was a couple of pictures of my family, friends, classmates and me…

"What about my family and friends?" I asked, suddenly remembering the funny detail about me being in another universe.

"Just don't worry about them." I heard him answer as I packed all of the stuff into the bag again, including the fans with (I guess) Innocence in them.

"What the hell do you mean by that?" I hissed, getting real tired of his shitty way of avoiding questions all the time. I looked up from the bag to give him a glare, only to find that he was…

...Gone.

"Hey!" I exclaimed, getting up from the ground to get a better look of my surroundings. "What do you mean I shouldn't worry about them?!"

I got nothing but silence in response.

"Asshole." I mumbled, picking up the bag and throwing the strap over my shoulder. Couldn't he at least have super-transported me all the way to the Black Order? How the hell was I supposed to find that place in a foreign country, in the 19th century – in a fictional universe!?

"Okay, take a deep breath Bella."

I did as I just told myself, taking a long breath and shutting my eyes, running a hand through my golden-brown hair in a vain attempt to calm down. He _just_ said I was in the center of London. I remembered reading somewhere that the Black Order was placed _near_ London.

Heh.

Okay.

No need to panic.

I just needed to get to the outskirts of London and then search for the place.

Right...?

…

"Fuuuuuuuck! How do I do that?!"

* * *

Okay, so after being on the verge of tears, I bought a map and a compass from an old British man, running his own shop. I was not exactly a professional at using a map and compass, but I did prize myself with a good sense of direction, so by the end of the day I actually covered quite a large distance of London's streets.

While doing this, I also made sure to try out my Innocence, activating and deactivating it whenever no one was around. Now, my thoughts when creating the fans was to use them as a sort of boomerang, so I also ran around and threw with them (whenever I was alone of course), which turned out to be a bit difficult. It was actually surprisingly hard to control them, so while looking for the Order, I would have to practice with my weapon as much as possible to get the hang of it.

That night before going to bed, I ran around in my room, jumping up and down and fangirling like a madman.

Heh.

This was going to be one heck of an adventure.

* * *

**A/N Welp~ that's the first chapter, thanks for reading :D It was mainly just an introduction of Annabella, and the real deal will begin next chapter when she joins the Order (uuuuuh!). I hope you liked it!**


	2. Exorcist's Headquarters

Panting I stopped, finally letting myself get a little break. The bag I was carrying on my shoulder was seriously starting to kill me, the strap on it must have given me a bruise ages ago. _I bet the cloaked guy did this on purpose…_

I looked up at the enormous castle-like building – or maybe it looked more like a huge church? Something in between at least, only it was, like, seven times bigger. Finally I found it, the exorcist's headquarters – the Black Order. Don't ask me how I managed to find it – it just kind of happened. It was as if I had this mental compass inside my mind, telling me whenever I was on the right track. Once again, I think the cloaked man might have had something to do with it.

This was definitely the new headquarters, meaning the storyline was taking place somewhere after the level 4 akuma-attack. _Damn it_. I had been hoping I might get here before everything regarding the Fourteenth happened, so I would be able to delay or change the situation to a better one – but I guess that was not possible now. I still didn't quite know where in the storyline I was though. _Guess I'm just gonna have to take things as it comes…_

I still ended up sighing in relief – I mean who wouldn't? I had been strolling around the outskirts of London for three _freaking_ weeks, trying to find this place. I even ran into four Level 1 Akuma on my way. Not gonna lie, I nearly pissed my pants. But I still managed to exercise them (after nearly getting myself killed a few times)! And I had gotten a pretty good hold of my Anti-Akuma weapon during those weeks.

Staring at the majestic building, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a few bat-like creatures flying around, only their body was completely round with a little – what looked like – a microphone on it. I remembered these clearly from the manga, they were golems and were machines created by the Science Division to keep an eye on things – like, for example, if an outsider was about to enter the headquarters (oh, the irony). This meant they already knew I was here, and given the fact that I probably looked like a confused lost little girl, the Supervisor was most likely already thinking of how to get rid of me, since they couldn't let any random villagers enter. _No need to wait, I guess._

I moved my brown coat in place and then switched the bag to my other bruised shoulder, wincing slightly at the pain. With my heart starting to beat a little faster than usual, I took a deep breath and began to walk up the slender path, which was completely surrounded by dark, tall trees, leading to the main entrance. _I hope they don't have any weird booby-traps hidden here. If they do, I'm just gonna turn around and come back later._

Luckily they didn't, and a few (painful) minutes later, I finally found myself placed in front of the enormous gate to the Black Order.

For a couple of minutes I just stood here awkwardly, waiting for the people in the headquarters to say something, but then realized they were not going to be the ones to start up the conversation here. _Are they hoping I will leave if they don't say anything?_

With hands nearly shaking from being nervous, I tried to clear my throat as much as I could, given the current situation I was in.

"Um, is this the Black Order?" I asked aloud, probably not sounding as confident as I was hoping. I went on a little louder, "Where the exorcists live? Erh – I'm an exorcist!" _Is that even the right thing to ask? And way to go adding that awkward comment by the end, Bella._

Silence.

They were probably desperately discussing how to handle this odd situation, given the fact that normal people really didn't know anything about this place.

"Sorry, what's your name and which General sent you? We are trying to find your recommendation letter." I suddenly heard a voice say, not quite sure where it was coming from though.

_Argh, shit…_

"Um, I kind of haven't sent a recommendation letter." I said awkwardly, my cheeks burning up, "And I wasn't sent by anyone…I didn't know it was required." I hurriedly added afterwards. A little pause followed. _Dammit, how can I be so stupid?! I should have sent a fake recommendation letter! Not really sure whether that would have been possible as I don't know the address though…_

"Take the examination from the Gatekeeper in front of you." The voice suddenly instructed.

I looked up at the huge stone head on the gate, which suddenly started to move, and in the blink of an eye, had stretched itself all the way down to me – invading my personal space and everything. I jumped in surprise and a little yelp escaped from my lips. _I must look like a real scaredy-cat._ And I even knew this was coming, having read the manga and all!

"X-ray examination. Determining whether subject is human or Akuma!" It's robotic voice yelled out, followed by a piercing light coming from its gapping eyes, nearly blinding me. Suddenly remembering that it had mistaken someone else in the manga before for being an Akuma, I started to feel a bit nervous again. _Oh dear god, please don't let it mistake me for an Akuma._

"Accepted!" It yelled out, again making me jump in surprise.

"Subject is human." Oh, _thank god_.

"Permission to enter is granted!" It finally yelled out, and then stretched back into the door, which with a high creak slowly opened up for me to enter. A little hesitant, I slowly took one step at a time toward the building. I hadn't made it far though, before a very familiar-looking guy in his mid- twenties showed up, his sandy blond hair standing up very messily, wearing a white open lab coat, the sleeves rolled up and a waistcoat underneath it. _I know this guy!_

"Sorry about the rude introducing." He apologized, rubbing his neck in a tired motion.

"That's fine," I grinned, wanting to give off a good first impression myself, "better play it safe." He eased up a little, a sleepy smile finally showing on his face as he thrust his hand out in front of me.

"I'm Reever Wenham, the chief of the European Branch Science Division, Section 1. Nice to meet you." Politely I shook his hand.

"I'm Bella Morrison, it's nice to meet you too." I responded, thanking whatever entity existed in the universe for my decent English I managed to develop back in school. _During my long three weeks of traveling, I decided it'd be much easier to just shorten my name._ "Sorry for all the trouble, by the way." _Well not really, but might as well be a little too polite in the beginning._

"Not at all." He laughed, pointing a thumb over his back, "I'll be taking you to the Branch Heads office. It's this way." Without complaining I followed Reever, overjoyed about finally having made it to my set destination. _Is this really happening?_

* * *

I guess I probably should have paid more attention to my surroundings, this Order almost having the size of a country and all, but truth to be told, I was occupied trying to control the urge not to scream, laugh or cry out insanely happy at the situation – _I was in the Black freaking Order_! So yeah, I had been mentally fangirling the entire way…

Which was the reason, when Reever suddenly stopped in front of me, saying we had made it to the Supervisors office, I had to mentally slap myself really hard in order to get back to reality. I quickly scanned the room to get a little grasp of my surroundings, only to confirm that this truly was the Head Chief's office, given the fact that the entire floor was literally hidden underneath stacks of undone paperwork. A little smile tugged at the corner of my lips, as I saw the messy office, _he is so funny._

"Supervisor." Reever mumbled irritated to the sleeping dark-haired man, lying on top of his office desk, which was also filled with stacks of paperwork. I tilted my head to the side, wondering if that was _really_ all he did?

"Hmm?" He murmured as he looked up, the white beret almost falling off of his head. As the Supervisor got a look of me half hiding behind Reever, he immediately jumped out of his chair, making me take a step back in surprise.

"Sorry about that!" He chuckled, placing the wire-framed glasses in place on his nose. "I pulled an all-nighter so I'm a little tired."

"So did I." Reever murmured annoyed. The Supervisor simply ignored him and proceeded to politely shake my hand.

"I am Komui Lee, Chief Officer of the Black Order and Branch Head of the European Branch." He smiled, maybe a little too excited.

"My name is Bella Morrison." I smiled back. "Thank you so much for having me." Komui continued to shake my hand, beaming like a little kid.

"Welcome to the Headquarters Bella! Make yourself at home." He made a motion for me to turn around, pointing toward the only paper-free object in this room – the couch.

Just as I was about to sit down (my legs practically screaming for the purple furniture) the door opened, revealing a certain dark-haired girl with a coffee mug in hand, making me stop dead my tracks.

"Oh!" She exclaimed softly, as both of our eyes met. Gently shutting the door again, she threw me a slightly confused look before turning to her brother – obviously wondering who in the hell I was and what I was doing here.

"Lenalee, this is Bella Morrison, she is an exorcist," Komui explained, his entire face lightening up even more (however that's possible) at the sight of his sister and the mug of coffee, "Bella, this is my adorable sister Lenalee!"

I smiled at that.

Lenalee blushed in embarrassment, ignoring the comment as well as possible and putting the blue mug down on the table. She then turned to me with a large smile, quick to shake my hand.

_Something tells me I'll be shaking a lot of hands today…_

"It's so nice to meet you, Bella."

"You too." I smiled back (a little _too_ visibly excited), understanding why people here liked her so much. There was something about her that was just comfortable to be in the presence of. Not to mention she was extremely pretty – even with short hair.

After our short greeting, I was quick to slop into couch, not caring whether I was being impolite or not, I just needed to sit down and get this crappy bag off.

_I still hate the damn thing. As soon as I don't need it any longer I'm gonna rip it in tiny pieces and then drown it._

Lenalee gracefully sat down beside me, still bearing that typical 'Lenalee smile' . "So will you be joining the Order?"

I grinned back at her and bobbed my head, all the while desperately fighting the urge not to hug her insanely like the inner fangirl in me surely wanted me to. _Control yourself Bella! _Komui leaned against his desk, clearing his throat.

"So, Bella," He began a little more serious, still smiling though, "what's your story?"

_Here goes nothing. Time to put my lame backup-story into action…_

"Well," I started, all three sets of eyes on me now, "a couple of weeks ago, the town I was living in was attacked by an Akuma." I quickly took a pause, trying to sound as believable as possible (I'm not exactly the best liar), "That was when I discovered I had Innocence, of course, I didn't know what was happening back then. My weapon just activated on its own and before I even realized it, I had killed the Akuma." Now that I said it aloud, I realized just how cheesy the story sounded. "This is when an older man came up asking me if I was an exorcist in disguise. Being quite confused about the situation I had just been through, he started to tell me about exorcists, Akuma, the Black Order and of course Innocence, and how it was all connected, though it all sounded a lot more like theories and questions instead of actual answers to me. Still, I decided I would try and find out whether it was all true or not, and so I began to search for this place based on theories and rumors I heard. I was attacked by a couple of Akuma during my search, and I came to the conclusion that if there really where such a thing as a main headquarters where people like me live to fight these things, I would want to help them."

I took a deep breath, finally finishing my silly back-up story. _As ridiculous as it sounds, will you just please believe it?_

"Well," Komui said, now smiling even wider than before, "then you have certainly come to the right place."

I instantly eased up, relieved and a little surprised that they believed me.

Maybe they were just more stupid than I thought?

_Now, don't be rude, Bella. If anything, the fact that they don't think you're lying simply proves that they're much more reliable and better people than you._

Now I felt kind of bad.

"So, where is your Anti-Akuma Weapon?" Komui asked curiously, followed by two just as curious glances from Lenalee and Reever.

"Oh!" I exclaimed, having completely forgotten all about it for a minute. I leaned forward to open up the bag and take out the two folded fans, the black metal shining slightly under the sharp light here.

"Are they both Anti-Akuma Weapons?" Reever asked, giving me a rather confused look. I simply nodded.

"So there is Innocence in both of them?" Lenalee asked, looking just as confused as Reever. She shifted a little to get a better look of the fans in my hands. _Huh? She is right. I hadn't thought of it that way._ Now, probably looking just as confused as Lenalee, I looked down at my weapons. There had to be Innocence in each of them if they both had to work, right? Or maybe not? What the hell did I know? It was Mr. cloak-dude that gave it to me after all.

"I actually don't know." I mumbled, loud enough for all three of them to hear it. I looked up at Komui, hoping he might have an answer.

"Odd." He murmured, glancing at the fans and then back to me.

"Is that bad?" I asked, feeling totally lost and kind of weirded out by this. _But then again, Lenalee has a pair of boots as her Innocence. But maybe it's not the same?_

"Not particularly." His smile instantly returned. "I guess time will show. Let's go to Hevlaska, maybe she knows something." I got up from the couch nodding, followed by Lenalee.

"Reever~ take Bella's bag to her room, will you?" Komui beamed while showing me another way out.

"What am I, your personal waiter!?" Reever yelled after him annoyed. _Actually I could have taken the bag myself, if it wasn't because of the bruises it has given me._

…

_Oh please, who the hell am I kidding? I don't want to carry that thing ever again even if my life depends on it._

* * *

As we took the elevator down to Hevlaska, Komui began to tell me about the story of the Innocence, and even though I already knew everything, I still decided to listen very carefully, just to be on the safe side. He ended the entire explanation with a pretty damn convincing speech, saying he hoped I would help them win this war.

"I hope you will help us win this war, Bella."

"That's what I'm here for." I answered him, even though my mind was actually going in a different direction. _I can't believe I'm actually in a war now. What if I die? What if I'm too weak to even survive one day here? I think I'm gonna have to pull myself together a bit if I don't want to get ruthlessly slaughtered._

"We're here." Lenalee stated, stepping out of the elevator followed by Komui and then me.

"Hevlaska, I want you to meet our new exorcist, Bella Morrison." Komui said friendly, then turned to look at me. "Bella, this is Hevlaska."

I looked up at the approximately 51 feet tall ghost-like creature, which looked to be made mainly of tendrils but became more refined, wispy hair-like strands around it's head, covering the eyes so only the nose and purplish lips were visible.

"Hevlaska is also an exorcist," Komui explained, "She has been acting as the Black Order's keeper of the shards of Innocence which has yet to find its Accommodator for hundreds of years."

"Nice to meet you." I mumbled awkwardly in awe, holding forth my Anti-Akuma Weapon to let her examine it. Two tendrils reached down for the fans, and very carefully, Hevlaska started to examine my Innocence.

"I-I… feel a good connection between the Innocence and its Accommodator…" She murmured. "7…15…32…49…55…59 percent. Your maximum synchronization rate is 59 percent." Gently she put them back in my hands. _I wonder if that's good enough?_

"Synchronization is the life-line for the Anti-Akuma Weapon activation. The lower the synchronization percentage, the harder it is to activate, and the user may become endangered." Komui explained.

"Bella Morrison…" Hevlaska went on, now having her gaze at me, "your arrival here will give you an entire new existence to this world… you will experience great happiness… and pain. How it will turn out in the end I cannot predict, however it is solely your will determining that." One of her tendrils gently touched my forehead, sending a warm tickling sensation through my body.

"Bella Morrison, the girl who sees through time."

…

Did she just give me a prediction?

"Sees through…time?" I mumbled.

"Interesting," I heard Komui murmur. "You know Hevlaska's fortune telling is correct most of the time." He turned towards Hevlaska, "So Hevlaska, about Bella's Innocence?"

"It is as if the Innocence is two different kinds, yet it is the same." She answered Komui. _That sounds kind of confusing. I kind of regret not just creating one fan now, something tells me having two is going to become really troublesome._

"Bella, may god be with you." Hevlaska finally finished her odd speech (it's the oddest one I have ever witnessed at least). Not quite knowing how to reply to that, I simply smiled awkwardly back at her.

"Oh well, now that we are done with that, Lenalee and I will show you around the Order!" Komui beamed, lightening up the heavy atmosphere.

"Brother, you have a lot of paperwork you need to finish." Lenalee scolded Komui. "I'll show Bella around, you should get back to work."

"Eh~? I want to show Bella around too!" Komui whined at his younger sister, but she was already pulling me away by the wrist toward the elevator.

"Have fun brother!" She laughed softly at him, waving as we got into the elevator, leaving Komui with Hevlaska.

"Gosh, he always tries to escape work." She sighed, as we go up in the elevator. I just grinned, totally loving the relationship those two have.

_I still cannot believe I'm actually here. Mental note number one; continue to not visibly fangirl._

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for reading! Leave a comment telling me what you think :D**

**At any rate, the story is gonna take place a few chapters after the Level 4 Akuma attack, so there might be a bit of spoilers for those who haven't read the manga yet. HOWEVER it will be a while before i mingle it with the canon-storyline, so upon till then nothing major will be spoiled (I think O_o).**


	3. New Faces - Live It Up!

"This is the cafeteria." Lenalee stated as we walked into a huge dinning hall with beautiful chandeliers hanging from the roof, and two rows of long benches, all lined up very precisely. _I wonder if the one that designed this had OCD?_

"That's our cook, Jerry." Lenalee went on, pointing to the other end of the cafeteria, where a very tall Indian-looking man with a sleeveless chef's overall and sunglasses was standing behind a desk, cooking as a ridiculously fast pace.

"Here is the lounge." She went on as we walked through another large hallway, past a big room filled with black leather couches, all facing their own direction toward one of the many coffee tables. On the right wall, a gigantic fireplace cut out in stone was standing, and the entire left wall was one big window, with a view of the eerie-looking forest outside.

"This is where everyone from the Science Division works." She explained after we had made it a little further down the building to a room that was twice the size of the cafeteria, which was filled up with desks, paperwork and a bunch of complaining, hard-working and sleeping scientists._ Poor things._ I thought, but still ended up grinning (almost evilly) at the sight of them. I managed to get a look of Reever scolding one of the scientists for falling asleep, before Lenalee and I went on.

"There are other rooms as well," She explained, while we walked toward the other end of the enormous building, "like the library, the sanatorium, the hospital and of course individual rooms. Right now though, I want to show you where the training room is, that's probably where most of the other exorcists are right now, except from the ones who are on missions of course. I'm sure most of them are finishing their training soon to get ready for dinner. Then we can eat together."

"Sounds nice." I smiled; once again feeling my nerves tingle, knowing I would be meeting so many "new" exorcists in a few minutes.

_Mental note number two; control yourself._

"By the way, I have been wanting to ask you Bella; how old are you?" Lenalee asked curiously.

"I'm seventeen."

"Really? I'll be turning seventeen in a few months too!" Lenalee exclaimed excited. _I know._ But I still played along.

"That's great!" I laughed out.

"It really is. This is the first time there is a girl on my age here." She smiled back, still seeming rather excited. "Besides you and me, there are only two other female exorcists here; Miranda and General Klaud, but she isn't here very often, being a General and all. There used to be five Generals here, but Kevin Yeegar was murdered by the Noah and General Cross disappeared a few months ago, so we don't know whether he is alive or not." Lenalee started to fade a little, looking dreary at her hands. "So there is a lot more work for the remaining Generals now."

I just nodded, feeling the depressing atmosphere spreading slowly. _Oh no, I'm not good with comforting people I barely know…_

A few minutes passed by in painful silence, as I awkwardly wondered whether I should try to comfort her or something. _But would it seem weird?_ I ended up simply giving her a soft smile, bending down in my knees a bit to be in the same eyelevel, as I was nearly four inches taller than her.

"Can I ask you something, Lenalee?" I said with hesitation, trying to change the subject. She looked at me in surprise but quickly went back to smiling.

"Of course."

"How many of the Noah is there?" Truth to be told I already knew how many Noahs there were, but I was aiming for something else.

"Well there used to be fourteen, but the fourteenth Noah was a traitor, so the Millennium Earl killed him. Oh!" She exclaimed, suddenly realizing something. _Bingo!_

"We have completely forgotten to tell you that Bella." Lenalee went on.

"What?" I asked, tilting my head in question. _Got to play along, right?_

"Well, a complicated story told short, eventually after the Earl killed the fourteenth Noah, the Fourteenth was later reincarnated with Allen, an exorcist here at the Order." Her voice started to fade again. _Oh jeez..._ "We don't know why though, and Allen is desperately trying to fight the Fourteenth so that he won't take over Allen's body."

Very fast Lenalee turned toward me, making me jump. "But you shouldn't worry about it! Even though we don't have it completely under control, lately we haven't seen anything to the Fourteenth and we have someone keeping watch over Allen 24/7 in case something happens! So please don't be afraid of Allen, because he is a really nice person!" She broke out, panting for air after having spoken a little too fast. _Holy crap. And people say I talk too fast sometimes…_

"Lenalee, calm down." I said, trying to calm her down a little. "How can I possibly judge a person I haven't even met yet?" _Cheesy, I know. But that's actually something I mean; I don't like judging people I don't know. Besides, I already know what kind of person Allen is._ I gave Lenalee a reassuring smile, which luckily seemed to calm her down quite a bit.

The rest of the way we talked about other stuff to lighten up the mood, having interesting conversations and chitchatting about this and that – until:

"This is where we all train." Lenalee finally finished, thrusting out her arm to show the never-ending training floor.

"Ah, there they are." She pointed a little further ahead where a small group of five people were practicing combat fighting. With sweaty palms and a pounding heart in my chest, I stumbled after Lenalee.

_Mental note number three; don't faint._

"Everyone!" She called, waving her hand. _No, no, no! I don't think I'm mentally prepared for this!_

"Meet our new comrade." She turned around and looked pleased at me, followed by five couple of eyes now resting on me. _God, I could just bury myself under a rock, right now. Mental not number one, two and three combine!_ Feeling my cheeks burning up, I tried to clear my throat.

"Um, I'm Bella Morrison. Nice to meet you all." I introduced myself, mentally remembering myself to smile. I nervously swept my (nearly too long) bangs to the side, so I wouldn't look like a weirdo trying to hide behind it.

"It's so nice to meet you, Bella."

The first person speaking up was a boy with completely snow-white chin-length hair and grey eyes. He had a very unusual-looking scar on the left side of his face. It was a person I knew way too well. _Damn he's cute. Mental note number four; don't hug him… yet at least._

"My name is Allen Walker." _I know. _He smiled at me, raising his right hand, his left hand completely dark-gray and covered in scales because of his Anti-Akuma Weapon. Happily I shook his hand, now a more natural smile showing on my face (hopefully).

"Welcome to the Black Order, I'm Noise Marie." A much bigger guy than Allen introduced himself. He wasn't looking directly at me, because of his blindness, but thanks to the headphones he was wearing, amplifying his sense of hearing, he managed to politely shake my hand, which almost disappeared under his much larger one.

He moved aside smiling, as a woman in her mid-twenties came from behind him, with a couple of dark circles around her brown eyes, her coffee-colored hair swinging from shoulder to shoulder as she tripped over her own feet, almost falling, but managed to stay up.

"I-it's so nice to meet you. My name is Miranda Lotto." She smiled a little embarrassed.

"I am Arystar Krory. You can just call me Krory. I hope we can get along." The tall and lean guy beside me said, smiling so friendly at me that the sharp facial features and the pointy ears just made him look sweet. I completely forgot the fact that there was a reason why people sometimes called him a vampire.

"And I am Chaoji Han." A stocky guy with dark eyes and brown hair pulled back into a spiky ponytail said from behind Lenalee. _Thank god I have read the manga, or else I honestly wouldn't be able to remember all of these names._

"It's so nice to meet all of you." I said again, still blushing a little. _Damn it! Why am I so embarrassed?_

"The pleasure is all ours. It's been a while since we had a new exorcist join us." Marie said.

The next twenty minutes pretty much just passed by with me answering various questions like where I was from, how old I was – questions that isn't too personal but still interesting enough for them to hear.

"Walker, go get changed so we can get some dinner." An unfamiliar voice suddenly said, coming from behind Allen. I looked past him to see yet another familiar face sitting on the sidelines. _Was he there the entire time? Freaky…_ The young man got up and walked toward Allen and the rest of us. He had blond hair, which he wore back in a braid that went down to his shoulder blades, and sports bangs; underneath them two vertical red dots were placed on his forehead.

"I am Howard Link, Allen Walker's watchman." It was more like a statement than an introduction. I just nodded. _Screw that, I'm gonna call you double-dot!_

"Actually I'm getting pretty hungry." Allen stated, rubbing his stomach. "Have you eaten yet?" He turned to Lenalee and me. I shook my head.

"Then we can eat together." Allen smiled, followed by a golden ball-like creature with four stubby legs, a long tail and two feathered wings, landing on top of his head. Apart from the golden color, the weird legs and tail, it looked just like the black golems the Order had – having the exact same body size of a Ping-Pong ball and the same long wings.

"Ah, Bella this is Timcanpy." He said, looking up at the golden golem, which proceeded to fly up and around my head a couple of times, before settling down on my shoulder.

"He already likes you." Allen laughed and then started to walk toward the staircase with Double-dot right behind him. "I just have to go change and then we can go eat."

Lenalee then followed him, and I made sure to wave politely at the others before turning around too.

_Mental not number five; don't call Timcanpy 'Golden Snitch'._

* * *

"So, what would the new beauty like to eat?" The cook named Jerry chuckled.

"I can have anything?" I asked in disbelief.

"Anything your heart desires."

"What are you guys gonna have?" I asked, looking at Allen, Lenalee and Link.

"I eat a lot of different things," Allen said, then turned to look at Link, "Link only eats different kinds of cake, though."

"Well, I'm twenty years old, so it is aright." Double-dot said, as if that explained everything.

"I guess something delicious with pasta would be fine." I finally answered Jerry.

"I'd like to have some noodle soup." Lenalee ordered, followed by Link saying he wanted some kind of pumpkin pie and Allen listing up so much food I completely lost count of it.

"Can you really eat all of that?" I asked him in total disbelief, even though I already knew the answer.

"Sure, I–" He started but got interrupted by someone behind me.

"Of course I have to end up waiting for the Beansprout to get his food." Was a really grumpy and dark voice complaining from behind me.

"The name is Allen!" Allen snarled at the person.

I turned around to see who was standing behind me, hearing Lenalee saying something about not wanting to see them fight in the middle of the cafeteria. I looked up at the tall, muscular Japanese with beautiful long, dark-blue hair put into a high ponytail (and I thought I had long hair), his bangs almost covering up the dark brown eyes. He was ridiculously pretty, prettier than Lenalee to be honest. _Yu Kanda. _He looked from Allen to me, obviously first noticing my presence now. _How can a guy be this pretty? Mental note number six; make sure to call him Rapunzel at some point._

"You must be the new exorcist, huh." He mumbled irritated.

"I'm Bella Morrison." I introduced myself, ignoring his bad attitude, because I knew getting in a fight with this guy was not a very pleasant experience.

"That's Kanda." Lenalee said, trying to lighten up the mood.

"BaKanda." I heard Allen mumble.

"Nice to meet you." I said smiling, and before I even noticed it myself, I had my hand raised, ready to gesture him. _What am I doing!?_ This guy was so rude he could have won an Oscar for it! Just like I feared, Kanda ignored my hand and instead snatched the bowl of soba at the desk behind me, making me look like a total idiot.

"Kæmpe nar…" I whispered irritated, making sure to be quiet so he wouldn't hear me, though he probably didn't even understand me.

"Kanda is rude Bella," Allen explained, glaring daggers at the Japanese, "he didn't want to shake my hand either when we first met."

"Well I obviously don't want to shake hands with a Beansprout." Kanda mocked Allen. "The girl is as tall as you are Beansprout, isn't that clue enough for you?" He turned around and walked down to an empty bench. _Ouch. He is right though – to my own surprise I'm as tall as Allen (and Link)._

Allen proceeded to snarl things after Kanda I'd rather just forget I ever heard. As soon as Jerry was done cooking the food though, Allen got in a better mood.

"Why don't we go to the lounge afterwards?" Lenalee suggested, as we walked toward one of the empty benches, all of us very occupied on not accidently dropping our food on the floor.

"Sounds cozy." I heard Allen answer; only I couldn't see him because of all of the food he was carrying. _Can he really eat all of that?_ I wondered again.

"So, for how long have you guys been at the Order?" I asked once we had all settled down at the table. _I need to know where in the plot I am._

"I came here approximately a year ago." Allen answered, his mouth full of food.

"I arrived here a few months ago when we found out Walker was the host to the Fourteenth." Link said blank, making Allen flinch, realizing what Double-dot just said. He looked up at me from his food, an alarming and tense expression plastered on his face. Allen opened up his mouth to say something, but I quickly interrupted him.

"I know about you being the host to the Fourteenth."

"Really?" Link mumbled surprised.

"And?" Allen asked worried.

"I don't mind." I reassured him with a smile while putting a fork filled with pasta in my mouth. Allen instantly eased up.

"What, did you think I would be afraid of you, or something?" I asked, feeling slightly offended.

"Well, it's just that people react differently to the fact that I am theoretically speaking, half Noah." Allen explained, eating the last part of his hamburger.

"It's been close to two months since word got out that Walker is reincarnated with the Fourteenth." Link explained with his usual blank face. "Some people here have a harder time accepting it than others. You do know who the Noah are right?" Link shot me a bit of a skeptical look.

"Long version short, they are the bad people who is helping the Millennium Earl conquering the world, right?" I took a sip of the glass with water in front of me. "Oh, and there are thirteen of them including the Earl and not counting with the Fourteenth." I added.

"That's right." Lenalee praised me, smiling bright like a little kid.

"As you are new, Miss Morrison, and weren't there to receive the same message as the other exorcists regarding the Fourteenth, it is my duty as Allen Walker's guardian to tell you this," Link began, having taken upon the same harsh expression as Lvellie now, "if Allen Walker is to awaken as the Fourteenth and be determined as a threat to the Order, it is your duty as an exorcist to follow the standing order – which is to kill Allen Walker."

I felt myself jerk in surprise at his last three words.

_"Kill Allen Walker."_

I guess I should have probably said something, anything. Nod and make myself clear that I understood. Tell him I promised to kill Allen if the Fourteenth was to awaken.

But I didn't. I couldn't. So instead I ended up sitting and having a stern (and awkward) staring contest with Link.

Out of the corner of my eye I could see Allen, looking uncomfortably down at his food – almost ashamed. I could feel Lenalee's mood having gone from happy and beaming to dull and sad. _I guess I now have the answer to my question regarding where in the storyline I am. It's before the Fourteenth in Allen is awakened. That's good. Then I can still change a few things._

I remembered what Allen said in the manga to calm everybody down regarding the awakening of the Fourteenth. And to avoid Link's order and pep the mood up again, I was just gonna resay those exact words.

"That won't happen, though." I tilted my head to the side, a goofy grin making it to my lips. "I'm sure that if the Fourteenth should awaken and attack the Order, Allen himself will stop him."

I might not have blown my cover yet, but the looks on Allen, Lenalee and Link's faces was telling me that I would have to be careful from now on. I couldn't just resay all of the cool punch lines that was used to encourage everybody here – I would have to make up my own.

Let's just say that while Lenalee and Allen's very surprised, but happy, faces were sweet, the look I was receiving from Link told me that he would probably not like me very much from now on. I guess that was fair enough; I did just piss him off by avoiding his order and then throwing off a cheesy encouragement speech. But I was glad I managed to cheer Lenalee and Allen up in my own freaky way.

After that we continued to eat, while chitchatting here and there (Link was the only one not to participate in the conversation) for another ten minutes before a new person appeared.

"Ah, Johnny!" Allen exclaimed, dropping his piece of bread as he waved to someone behind me.

"Hi Allen." A younger-looking guy from the Science Division greeted Allen, putting his tray beside Allen's. He had huge fly-round glasses on, a headset and brown curly hair he had tied in a small ponytail. He was not very tall, probably the same height as Lenalee, maybe even a few inches shorter.

"Link, Lenalee-" He said, as he greeted everyone at the table while sitting down beside Allen, stopping at me. "Ah! You must Bella Morrison." He half stated, half asked, leaning a little across the table to get a closer look of me.

"That's me." I mumbled.

"Squad leader Reever told all of us about you, and I really wanted to go welcome you a little sooner, but there was just so much work." He excused himself.

"That's completely fine, I understand." I chuckled.

"My name is Johnny Gill. I'm from the Science Department." Johnny took my hand and politely shook it.

"It's nice to meet you." I said. _How many times have I said that today, anyway?_

"So, what do you think of the Order so far?" He asked me, taking a bite of his pizza.

"I really like it. Everyone here is so nice and welcoming." _With an exception of Kanda of course._ Johnny smiled at my answer, most likely not expecting anything less.

"You guys sure have been working late today, though." Lenalee stated, turning to Johnny.

"But aren't they always working a little late?" Allen asked, giving Timcanpy an annoyed glare because he just ate the last piece of Allen's beef jerky. _Does golems even need food?_ Johnny just nodded tired to Allen's question.

And so, we all ended up sitting in the middle of the cafeteria, having different conversations about random topics, even though none of us were eating anything. We were probably sitting like that for a few hours, the cafeteria slowly becoming more and more empty as time passed by. Eventually, I made it to a point where I felt drained from energy, my eyelids becoming unnaturally heavy, and honestly it felt like they were fighting a battle against my brain, trying to stay awake. I closed my eyes for a few seconds, then opened them half up and then closed them again.

"Bella, you look really tired." I heard Allen say. I jumped in surprise, my eyes instantly opening up.

"Huh?"

"You look tired." He repeated. "You should go to bed."

"It must have been a long day for you." Johnny said, agreeing with Allen. I nodded.

"I'll go to bed, then." I mumbled sounding a lot more tired than I thought. I got up from the bench, finally getting to stretch my legs, and was about to walk to my room, when I suddenly realized something.

"Um…" I started, turning around, looking at no one in particular.

"What's wrong?" Lenalee asked a little worried.

"I don't know where my own room is." I sighed. "Reever is the one who took my bag to my room."

"That's fine, I'll take you to your room." Johnny smiled, getting up from the bench. "I have to go to bed anyway, having work tomorrow and all."

"Thanks." I said, feeling so very grateful as I honestly didn't know for how much longer I would be able to stay awake. _Just don't faint in the middle of the cafeteria, because that would be extremely awkward._

"See you guys tomorrow then." I said, forcing up a last (tired) smile as Johnny and I waved at them, walking out of the cafeteria. We walked through the big hallways, up at what seemed like a million of stairs and finally made it to the second floor, where the individual rooms apparently were, which was pretty much filled up with a bunch of hallways with doors, each door leading to a personal room I would assume. I tried to pay attention as much as possible, because every single door here looked the same, but honestly I don't think I would be able to remember where my room was – despite having a good sense of direction (if I should say so myself).

"This is your room." Johnny suddenly stated, stopping in front of one of the black doors.

"Thank you so much, Johnny."

"It was nothing." He smiled, turning around. "I'll be going to my own room, then. Sleep tight."

"You too." I yelled after Johnny as he turned down another hallway, completely disappearing.

Slowly I put my hand on the cold door handle, opening the door and walked inside the dark room. I stumbled a little around the room at first, trying to find the plug, which I ended up finding right beside the door, _I mean of course that's where it is; it usually is right?_ I switched on the light and looked around the room, getting an overview of it all.

It was a pretty medium-sized room with light colors. In the left corner a big comfortable-looking bed was placed, the end facing towards me, and beside it my bag had been placed. There was a small bedside table with a dark lamp on top. On the right side a little elegant desk of drawers was placed. There was a big window on the wall across the room, with a perfect view to the eerie-looking forest outside and with dark-blue, long curtains. _Cozy._

Not having the energy to start looking for my pajamas, I simply kicked off my shoes and threw off my pants and socks. I turned off the big light and walked across the room, course right for the bed, and as I threw myself on it, I could just feel how all of my limbs were aching from tiredness. I pulled the large duvet over me, and then let the entire day have a free run in my head, a soft smile tugging at the corners of my lips.

_I finally made it…_

* * *

**A/N: So yeah, I thought it'd be fun to have Bella muttering things after Kanda in her native language XD Also, I'm finally gonna have Lavi introduced in the next chapter (whoop, whoop!) I hope you liked this chapter, leave a review telling me what you think :)**

**Translation:**

\- Kæmpe nar: Big jerk


	4. Life Is Like A Rollercoaster

_Damn it!_ Aggressively I punched the wall beside me with a clenched fist. _Ow!_

"How can I possibly be lost!?" I snarled at myself, still walking down the long hallway filled with doors.

"I have a perfect sense of direction!" I cried out in rage. It was all because these stupid hallways looked the same, I mean come on, at least put some numbers on them or something! Cursing and swearing at everything I come across, I continued to walk down the dark hallway. I had been strolling around for, like, ten minutes now. Starting to run out of curses and swears in English I switch over to Danish, knowing a lot more of them in my own language, yelling things I never thought I'd hear anyone but my deceased grandmother say.

"U-um, Bella?" I heard a nervous voice say from behind me. _Oh thank god!_ Spinning around on my heels, I saw to my relief Miranda standing behind me, dressed in a formal black long dress, her coffee-colored hair pulled back in a low ponytail.

"Miranda! Please help me, I'm lost." I whined as I ran over to her.

"How do I get out of here?" I asked, sounding just as lost as I felt. "It all looks the same."

"Ah, don't worry Bella, I couldn't find my way either at first." Miranda said, chuckling nervously. She pointed behind her. "If you just continue to walk that way, you'll reach the stairs in no time." She smiled at me, before a look of concern crossed her features. "Can you find your way from there? Or should I show you the entire way to the first floor?"

"No, no, that's fine." I reassured her. "Thank you so much, Miranda." I said gratefully as I ran down the hall, waving over my shoulder (and nearly colliding with a wall that I hadn't been paying attention to).

And she was right. Not long after, I found the staircase leading to the first floor. I ran down as fast as I possibly could, which resulted in my feet tripping, so I decided to slow down a little, not to get in any accidents the first morning I was here.

Running through the big hallway that leads to the cafeteria, I passed Krory and Chaoji, yelling a quick 'good morning' to them as I passed by. Panting I finally made it to the cafeteria, stopping at Jerry's desk.

"Good morning Bella!" He greeted me with a little too much energy in his voice. I simply continued to pant, raising a hand as a sign for him to wait a moment.

"Take a deep breath." Jerry chuckled, and I did as instructed.

"The morning is my worst enemy." I explained, finally starting to feel better. He simply laughed at my silly statement.

"So, what would the young lady like to have for breakfast?"

"Just something light." I answered him, thinking for a moment. "A fruit-salad would be nice."

He eyed me skeptically before turning around, taking out all different kinds of fruits and placing them on a cutting board. I made sure the black shirt I was wearing was sitting correct in the meantime.

"Bella!" I heard a familiar voice yell. Turning around, I looked confused after Allen, but there were so many people in the cafeteria that I couldn't find him anywhere. Then, like my prayers had been heard, I noticed Allen's white hair popping out from the crowd as he got up and waved at me, trying to get my attention. Grinning, I waved back at him before turning around to get my food.

"All done!" Jerry smiled as he pushed forth a tray with a big bowl filled with all kinds of fruits (some of them which I had never seen before), all cut out in different shapes, along with a plate filled up with egg, bacon and toast. I eyed the big plate I never ordered with confusion.

"I didn't-" I began, but was immediately interrupted.

"I know, but it's important to keep your energy at its fullest, which is only possible if you make sure to eat lots and lots of food." Jerry declared, patting me on my stomach. "I have to make sure you get lots of proteins."

It's not like I barely ate anything at all, it's just that I didn't have that big of an appetite in the morning, but feeling a little touched about the fact that Jerry worried about how I ate, I decided to take the entire tray with me. I thanked Jerry and then walked across the room toward the bench Allen was sitting on, along with Link, Lenalee and a fourth person I couldn't quite see who was, because of the multiple people in the way of my view and the person was sitting with his/her back facing me.

I put my tray of food in front of Allen's and then dumped down on the bench across from him, Link and Lenalee.

"I really hate mornings." I groaned, as I let my entire upper body lie on top of the table, burying my head in my arms, literally using them as a pillow.

"Not a morning person, huh?" Link mumbled, Lenalee giggling at me. I just shook my head.

"Somehow, that doesn't surprise me." Allen sighed, patting me on the shoulder, followed by Timcanpy gently landing on top of my buried head.

"I wish all mornings would be erased from earth." I mumbled, loud enough for them to hear me. They just laughed at my pitiful wish.

"Hi there." I suddenly heard an unfamiliar voice say. Reluctantly turning my head, I threw a glance at the person sitting beside me.

"You must be the new exorcist Allen and the others told me about." The guy said, his left emerald green eye smiling friendly at me, the right eye completely hidden behind a black eye patch. He was wearing a turquoise bandana, holding back some of the red messy hair.

It took me a second too long before I realized what was happening.

"Ah!" I exclaimed, straightening myself up so fast everyone at the table jumped a little in surprise.

"I'm so sorry, my senses are really dull in the morning so I tend to not notice what is going on around me." I apologized awkwardly, speaking a bit too fast. I thrust out my hand in front of him. "My name is Bella Morrison, and yes, I am the new exorcist here."

My entire face was heating up. _Well, this is just plain awkward… for me._

"Nice finally meeting you. I'm Bookman Junior, but you can just call me Lavi." The redhead laughed, shaking my hand.

_Lavi, huh?_

For some reason back when I read the manga, I always happened to feel quite drawn to the guy. It probably had to do with his goofy persona and constant cheerful expression. Despite his mischievous mood however, he was very insightful and intelligent, and was good at coming up with battle-strategies.

But he was also one of the people I felt the most sorry for here; being a Bookman Lavi couldn't actually get any attachments. It saddened me to know that his exterior behavior was just a façade, and that he actually was quite a reserved person. Truthfully, he wasn't allowed to care about anyone – he was expected to move on without so much as a flinch if a "comrade" died. And as far as I knew, Lavi was having a hard time sticking to these convictions.

_Well, I'm just gonna have to be extra nice to him._

"Let's get along, Lavi." I grinned.

"Yup." Lavi smiled back at me, followed by a large bite of his bread. _Damn he's good-looking. Mental note number seven; don't randomly kiss the guy._

"So hey, how old are you Bella?" Lavi asked, looking curiously up from his breakfast.

"She is 17, just like I'll be soon." Lenalee answered him ahead of me. _Guess she is still excited about that…_

_Mental note number eight; don't get angry with Lenalee for answering questions ahead of you._

"Really? Then I'm your elder, being 19." Lavi stated cheeky.

"What, do you want me to address you with some kind of honorifics?" I asked, a smile creeping onto my lips.

"Great Lord Lavi would be fine." He teased.

"In your dreams." I mumbled, already having decided I would just be calling him by his current "name" – Lavi.

"Then you're still the youngest exorcist here Allen." Lavi laughed at Allen, who just gave Lavi an irritated look in return.

"He is only one year younger than me and Bella." Lenalee tried to defend her friend.

"Yeah, yeah. So what is your Anti-Akuma Weapon like?" Lavi asked me, still sounding rather curious. Allen looked up from his own large breakfast, now seeming just as curious as Lavi.

"Yeah, what kind of weapon is it?" Allen asked.

"It's two fans." I simply answered, not really sure how else to describe my weapon.

"Wait, two?" Allen repeated, Link looking a little more interested in our conversation now. _Oh geez, here we go. _I just nodded.

"We can't really figure out why Bella has two weapons. Also because it's an equipment-type." Lenalee tried to explain.

A short silence was followed.

I glanced at Lavi who was being a little too quiet (for him), which was probably because he was trying to come up with some kind of Bookman explanation for this. _Yep here comes the trouble involving my Innocence._

"Equipment-type?" I asked, hoping I could change the subject by pretending to be dumb and not knowing about the different types of Innocence.

"So far, we know of three different types of Anti-Akuma Weapons." Lavi began to explain. I turned my head to look at him, trying to make it seem like I was actually listening. I think – or hope at least – that I had a convincing 'fake-listening-look', as I ended up just staring at Lavi without paying attention. Don't hold it against me, it was too early in the morning for my brain to function and actually learn anything. I did it back in school too, the first class every morning I just pretended to listen to the teacher's rambling. My brain just worked different from other brains, okay?

Lavi's explanation ended up taking far longer than what I had imagined, and finally, when the redhead did finish his life's longest monologue, he shot me a skeptical look.

"Have you even been listening?"

"Of course." I lied, giving him the sweetest smile I could muster at the moment. "Three kinds of Innocence; Equipment that is the most common, Parasitic that is much more rare, and Crystal, which is an evolved type from Equipment – Lenalee being the only one to have it at the moment."

Lavi seemed convinced by my short explanation, grinning and returning to his breakfast. "You learn pretty quickly. It looked like you were just spacing out, but I guess not."

_Argh crap… I need to work on my 'fake-listening-look' unless I actually want to have everything I already know explained a second time, and be forced to listen to it!_

A little idea suddenly popped up in my head.

"But hey!" I exclaimed, everybody at the table looking at me in surprise. "If Lenalee has two boots as her Anti-Akuma Weapon, then isn't it the same as me having two fans?" I asked to no one in particular, but ended up looking at Lavi. _Hell yes! No weird theories about my Innocence this time!_

"Well, not really," He began. _What!? Come on, way to go killing my enthusiasm… _"I mean, Lenalee's Boots is a pair, you know they're parts of the same weapon."

"Can't my fans be a pair, too?" I asked a little annoyed. _Does he have to question everything? Just roll with it little Bookman Junior._

Lavi just shrugged. "Don't know, maybe. Then again, I haven't even seen your weapon yet. But it just sounds different from Lenalee's."

"So, what you're saying is my Innocence is different from yours."

"Something like that." Lavi mumbled. Everyone else simply shrugged.

"You know," He began, looking at me again, "one of the things the Black Order and the Millennium Earl is desperately searching for, is a shard of special Innocence called the Heart, which is supposed to contain the source of power of all Innocence pieces. It's unknown what exactly it looks like, but it has been speculated that the Heart holds much more power than an ordinary Innocence shard and reacts in even stranger ways than usual. However, should the Heart be destroyed, every other piece of remaining Innocence would shatter along with it. It would be an incredibly large advantage over our opponent, and the other way around, if either side find it," Now Lavi looked a little too intense at me for it to be comfortable, "or the one compatible with it."

…_Wait a freaking minute._

"And because my Anti-Akuma Weapon _sounds_ a little different from yours, you think I have it?" I said skeptically, my eyes squeezing into slits.

"Maybe. It's a possibility at least." Lavi concluded.

God, how I wish I could just tell them I got this because I _wished_ for it and not because I was _chosen_ unlike everyone else here. I wasn't even sure my Innocence was an official part of the 109 other shards of Innocence. Ugh, I should have just asked for one fan instead of two – problem solved! Now I had to live with these guys thinking I might be the Heart, when I wasn't even from their world! It was ridiculous!

"Trust me, I _don't_ have it." I said, trying to sound as convincing as possible. Lavi just shrugged his shoulders again.

"I never said you did, I just said there is a tiny possibility that you might have it. We also thought Lenalee might have it when her Innocence first started to act weird, but it turned out it was just evolving."

"Yeah, yeah." I mumbled, then tried to turn the whole thing around a little. "Then isn't there a possibility you might have it too?"

"I guess." He answered completely uninterested, picking at his remaining bread with a knife. I just went back to my almost untouched breakfast. Leaving our last topic, we all started to just chitchat a little, Lavi talking about something funny that had happened on the mission he just returned from this morning, as Johnny suddenly walked up to our table.

"Good morning, everyone." He greeted us all, full of energy. _Why are they all so hyperactive here?_

"Welcome back Lavi. How did your mission go?" He asked Lavi.

"Just fine. Why don't you sit down Johnny, something really funny happened I have to tell you." Lavi said, already cracking up from just thinking about it.

"Actually, I came here for something else." Johnny excused himself, now swinging around with a long tape measurer and looked at me.

"Bella if it's not bothering you too much can I maybe take your measurements?" He asked me, then added. "It's for your uniform."

"That's right, you never actually got your measurements taken when you arrived yesterday." Lenalee interjected.

"Each exorcist get their own uniform when they go on missions." Johnny explained. "And if I can get your exact measurements for the uniform, it will be a lot easier for you to move around in and it will provide a better defense."

"Sure." I smiled, getting up from the bench to face Johnny.

"How do you want me to stand?" I asked, never actually having gotten my measurements taken before.

"If you just stand straight and stretch out your arms, that would be perfect." Johnny instructed me, putting down a sheet of paper on the table and a pencil down in the chest pocket on his lab coat. I stretched out my arms as I was told, making sure to stand completely still as Johnny started to take my measurements, beginning with the length from my feet and up to my knee. He wrote it down on one of the sheets of paper he brought along, and then measured the breadth of my ankles, wrote it down, measured the breadth of my tibia, wrote down, and he continued like that for another ten minutes, making sure to do it very thoroughly, even measuring the length of my neck for some reason.

Finishing up, Johnny stretched out his entire body and then looked satisfied at the paper filled up with the numbers of my measurements.

"Perfect! How do you want you're uniform to look like?" Johnny asked, turning to me again.

"I get to decide myself?" I asked, already having the entire outfit made and ready inside my head. _Yeah, I'm a nerd._

"Well, all of the uniforms have the same kind of design, but of course you get to decide yourself what kind of uniform you want, like for an example a long or short coat." Johnny said. "This uniform though will just be temporarily, as I am working on a new design at the moment."

"Fair enough. Can we make this uniform together then?" I asked.

"Sure!" Johnny beamed, sitting down on the bench. He put the sheet of paper in front of us and got ready to draw everything down with the pencil.

And so, we used I-don't-know-how-many hours creating the design of my uniform and having one heck of a large argument about whether I should be wearing a skirt or not.

"It'll be a lot easier for you to move around in a skirt." Johnny tried to explain.

"I don't care! What if I jump and people see my underwear?" I whined, a little too loud, my mind set on either shorts or a pair of pants.

"I'll make something for you to wear under it!"

"No! No! I refuse!"

"Come on, Bella!"

"Nope!"

After a long (and pretty loud) argument, we finally agreed on something in-between the two options. Once we were done with everything, we were sitting by ourselves, Lavi, Allen and Link having gone off to do some training and Lenalee left to make coffee for the hardworking Science Division guys.

"I'll have your uniform ready by the end of the day." Johnny stated as he got up, looking quite satisfied at the sketch. "You should probably start training with the others, Bella."

I just nodded, suddenly realizing something.

"I don't have any clothes to train in." I looked up at Johnny, hoping he have some kind of brilliant idea.

"Everybody have the same clothes to train in. I'll make yours while I make your uniform. In the meantime, you can just borrow a set from Lenalee." He answered me. "If I see her, I'll say you're looking for her."

"Alright, thanks," I said, getting up from the bench and walking out from the cafeteria with Johnny. I waved at him as I turned left toward the stairs, Johnny walking further down the hallway toward the Science section. Luckily on my way to the second floor, I met Lenalee, who was about to go training with everyone else.

"I already put a spare of my training clothes in you're room." She said, before I even get to ask her about it. She followed me to my room, this time I made sure to remember the way, which actually turned out to not really be that complicated as I thought.

"I'll be down training with the others while you change." Lenalee smiled, closing the door to my room on her way out, giving me some privacy to change. I walked over to my bed where a set of clothes, very nicely amalgamated, was placed.

I quickly put on the clothes, surprised at how comfortable it was to wear, concluding it must be made of some kind of stretchy material. The boots were surprisingly light and comfortable too, despite looking the exact opposite. Luckily it was only the t-shirt that was a little tight around my chest and belly, and the pants might be a little short, but wasn't visible when I put on the boots. I rummaged around in my bag, trying to find a hair tie to put up my hair in a ponytail and then exited my room.

Excited about my first day of training, I started to walk a little faster than usual through the hallways, sometimes making a little jump, still totally taken aback by how comfortable these boots were.

As I made it to the training ground, looking around and trying to find the others, I saw them all at the other end of the room. A little curious as to what they were all doing, given the fact that they were all sitting on the floor, I started to slowly walk across the room.

As I got closer, I could finally see what was going on. On one of the platforms dug into the ground and made for training, everybody was sitting around facing it, watching Allen and Rapunzel fight each other. And when I say fight, I mean they were _really fighting_; no mercy for each other whatsoever. _I don't want to fight like that._ Recognizing the red hair, I very discretely walked over and let myself dump down beside of Lavi.

"Do you all fight so intensely against each other here?" I asked, feeling the fear slowly creeping up my spine, making me want to flee at the moment. Lavi gave me a surprised look.

"Whoa, I didn't hear you Bella." He laughed. "And no we don't, it's just those two." He pointed at Kanda and Allen who was hitting and kicking out after each other like their lives depended on it. "They really don't get along, so they always end up literally beating each other up." He smiled rather brightly, obviously finding the entire situation quite hilarious.

"Thank god…" I mumbled. Now having cleared that up, I looked around to see who else was here. On another platform, a little further away from the one Allen and Kanda was fighting on, Lenalee and Marie was talking, while lightly hitting out after each other once in a while. _That doesn't look so bad._ I smiled at the sight of the 6'6 feet tall and buff Austrian man, battling the really tiny-looking Lenalee.

On the other side of the training ground, a nervous-looking Miranda was sitting along with Chaoji, leaning against one of the marble posts.

Suddenly I felt something very light appearing in my lab and I looked down to find Timcanpy having settled down, somehow looking a little tired.

"Hi Tim." I chuckled, running a hand over the golden ball, the feather wings falling down completely relaxed. I managed to get a little glimpse of some very sharp, shark-looking teeth as Timcanpy somehow yawned.

"Mind if I sit here?" I heard someone ask behind me. I turned to look up and see Krory now standing beside me.

"Hey there, Kuro-chan." Lavi greeted the tall, vampire lookalike man. I nodded and he sat down beside me, smiling friendly.

"So, how are you doing Bella?" Krory asked me. "You know, with so many new things happening so fast."

"I'm doing fine." I reassured him, still petting Timcanpy. "It was all a little confusing at first, but I think I'm slowly getting used to this place."

"I'm so glad to hear that." Krory smiled softly. "I also had to get used to everything when I first got here."

"Before Kuro-chan came here, he had spent his entire life living in a secluded castle." Lavi said, joining in on the conversation.

"Before Lavi and Allen found me, the people in the village was really afraid of me, because I unconsciously had been attacking Akuma, so they all thought I was a vampire." Krory explained.

"In the end, it turned out that it was Kuro-chan's Innocence that made him attack the Akuma, and so he came with us to the Black Order." Lavi finished the short explanation.

"Since I at the time had never been out from my castle, everything was really scary and confusing at first. But eventually I got through it, and now I am more happy than I have ever been." Krory said, giving it a really happy ending.

"That's so nice." I smiled at him.

Looking back at the fight between Allen and Rapunzel, I made sure to observe their every move and attack, deciding it would probably be best if I just stayed on the sidelines for today.

"Hey! Yu! Allen! Are you two gonna be done soon?" Lavi suddenly yelled down at the two fighting exorcists. They both looked up annoyed at the redhead, completely covered in scratches and bruises.

"Bella wants to try fighting, so take a break okay!" He went on.

_Wait. What!?_

"No I don't." I whispered, turning to Lavi. He just grinned as Kanda walked out from the battle, clicking his tongue in annoyance. Allen looked over at me, smiling.

"Good luck, Bella."

Lavi stood up and then pulled me up by the arm, making Timcanpy fall to the ground. The golem shook its body from side to side from the impact.

"Can't I just practice by myself?" I asked, desperately trying to avoid the situation this redheaded idiot was about to put me in. I grabbed Lavi's wrist, trying to drag him away from the training ground, both of us pulling on one another in two different directions. Obviously Lavi won, being the stronger one of us.

"No you can't." He grinned, dragging me closer to the terrifying training ground. "Besides I'm sure everybody here wants to see what the new exorcist can do."

"But I can't do anything!" I whined, tugging at his arm again. _How is he so freaking strong?!_

"That's kind of the idea with this place you know. We train to get stronger and learn." Lavi had finally managed to pull me into the middle of the training ground. I looked over at Krory, hoping he would help me, but he just smiled encouraging at me. On his way out, Allen came over and smilingly patted me on my shoulder. To my own horror I now saw Lenalee and Marie having joined the others.

_Damn it. I guess life is like a rollercoaster, going up and down. Right now, I'm at the part where you throw up…_

* * *

**A/N: So, Bella finally met Lavi (under some pretty awkward circumstances). And now she has to start training and is close to fainting XD Stage fright, maybe (I don't know)? At any rate, thanks for reading I hope you liked this chapter - tell me what you think and leave a review :)**


	5. Fiction Is The Truth Within The Lie

I looked up to find basically everybody staring at me. Rapunzel was the only person that was about to leave – making him my favorite person at the moment. I managed to get a little glance of Link sitting in one of the corners reading a book, before I with shaking hands turned around to face Lavi.

_Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!_

"Calm down, I'll go easy on you Bella." Lavi chuckled. "We just need to know how good of a fighter you are."

_What part of "I can't do anything" does he not understand?_ I took a deep breath to calm myself down, getting ready for Lavi to start attacking me any second now. _Okay, I have two options at the moment; fight or flight?_

Rather relaxed, Lavi took a step toward me, opening his mouth to say something. Alarmed about his sudden movement, my instincts took over, and as fast as I could, I moved my legs in one swift movement toward him. _Fight!_ Quickly I slid my foot behind his left leg, grabbing his t-shirt as I pulled back my leg, putting all of my strength in my arms; tackling Lavi, who with a loud bump fell to the ground on his back. I fell down on my knees beside him, not letting go of his shirt. He looked up at me with a confused and a little startled look on his face.

"Hi." He mumbled bewildered, our faces inches from each other.

"Sorry," I mumbled, getting up and reaching a hand down to help him up, "I just got a little frightened." He took my hand and I managed to pull him back up on his feet.

"Did you just tackle me?" He asked still sounding puzzled.

"Maybe."

"I thought you didn't know how to fight." Lavi grinned back at me. Slowly, he raised his right hand, provokingly flicking me on my forehead.

"Try to avoid it." He told me, slapping me on my shoulder with his hand. "How many times are you going to get punched?" He asked me teasingly and then lightly clapped me on my waist. I just gave him a confused look.

_But you're not even punching me._

Feeling pretty damn stupid, I just started to block his silly slaps with my hands. He sped up slowly, but not so fast that it was getting hard for me to block.

Bit after bit I started to ease up, even making it to the point where I began to counterattack, which made Lavi slap out after me even faster. Before I even knew of it, we were practically hitting out after each other like it was a real battle, not as aggressively and fierce as Kanda and Allen of course, but fast enough for it to be called training.

I maneuvered around Lavi, behind his back and raised my leg, kicking out after his head. He dodged my kick in the last second though; bending down in his knees, then swung his leg across the floor toward my legs, trying to floor me to the ground. I made a light jump in the air, dodging his leg. Everything my teacher taught me in karate was slowly coming back, as I continued to punch and kick out after Lavi, mainly targeting the few vital spots I remembered.

"'Can't do anything'- my ass." Lavi laughed out; too fast for me to actually land a clean hit on him.

"You know what you're doing Bella." With a clenched fist he hit out after me and I blocked it with my wrists.

"Have you been doing martial arts, or something?" He grinned at me; dodging my fist I threw right at his solar plexus.

"Karate, actually." I corrected him. I made sure to hold my concentration at its peak, my face probably showing nothing but a focusing frown.

It seemed as if I had suddenly become immune to my surroundings, my entire mind set on actually fighting Lavi. A few rare occasions occurred when I _almost_ managed to land a hit or kick at the redhead, but to my own annoyance, he continued to dodge my attacks. Lavi on the other hand, managed to almost hit me frequently during our training, and I knew that this despite just being practice, was going to be a thousand times harder than it was back when I did martial arts.

"Don't be too rough on her, Lavi!" I suddenly heard someone yell, and I looked up to find (to my surprise) Reever standing beside Allen. He smiled at us, and was quick to Lavi stop his attacks.

"Let's take a little break." He grinned at me, panting a little.

"Alright." I answered, realizing how tired I had actually gotten from jumping around hitting and kicking out after Lavi non-stop, for I don't know how long.

"That was really impressive." Allen praised me, as I dumped down beside of him and Reever, followed by Lavi. I smiled at the sight of Timcanpy sitting on top of Allen's head.

"Thanks." I panted. Reever gave me a bottle of water, which I gladly accepted.

"How are you holding up, Bella?" The tired-looking scientist asked me, as I took a sip of the water from the bottle.

"Just great." I answered, still drinking the cold water. _People sure ask me that a lot. Are they afraid I'll have some mental breakdown?_ I looked over at Lenalee who was walking toward us, and she smiles softly at me, before coming up and standing beside me.

"See you." She said, giving my shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"Where are you going?" I asked, looking up at her in confusion.

"I've got a mission with Marie, so we'll be leaving in half an hour."

"What? Why?" I asked her dumbfounded.

"Bella, that's what exorcists do here." Lavi sighed. "Didn't you know that?" _Of course I know that! I just don't want Lenalee to leave…_

"Well then, good luck." I said to Lenalee, ignoring Lavi's annoying question.

"We'll be back before you know it." She smiled, leaving the training ground with Marie. I just looked after them with a hopeless expression, feeling left behind, which was kind of silly, but I couldn't really help it.

"Cheer up Bella. They'll be back in a few days." Allen encouraged, trying to lighten up the dull atmosphere. Timcanpy flew off of Allen's head and landed in my lab, obviously wanting me to pet him again. He pushed my hand a little, until I started patting him.

"You two seem to have gotten pretty close." Allen laughed. I nodded, smiling widely at him while still petting Timcanpy. Somehow the golem reminded me of my dog.

"Hey do you guys want to get some dinner? I'm getting pretty hungry." Allen suddenly asked a bit excited.

"He's always hungry." Lavi whispered to me. I chuckled, thinking it was cute how the youngest exorcist here was actually the one who ate the most.

"Oh well, I have to get back to those lazy people." Reever groaned, probably talking about the rest of the science department, while getting up from the floor. He waved at us as he left the training floor.

"Well," Lavi began, getting up and stretching his limbs, "It's almost getting time for dinner anyway. You coming, Bella?"

"Yeah but," I got up from the floor along with the others, "actually, I'd like to take a bath first. Lenalee told me there is a sanatorium, but she never actually showed me where it is." Timcanpy flew up and landed on Allen's head.

"Don't worry I can show you where it is." Allen suggested. Lavi opened his mouth to say something, but got interrupted.

"There you are, idiot." A really old-looking man suddenly said, appearing right behind Lavi, kicking him on his tibia.

"Ouch!" Lavi yelled out, jumping up in surprise; the old, almost bald man standing completely still, completely untouched by Lavi's sudden outburst, his eyes resting on Lavi was completely surrounded by dark black circles of makeup. He only had a patch of hair on his head that stood up making the shape of a question mark. Unlike everyone else here, he was not wearing training-clothes, but a knee-length black kimono with huge sleeves and a pair of brown puffy pants.

"Gramps!" Lavi exclaimed, the old man who honestly looked a bit like a panda, just seemed a little annoyed with Lavi. He then proceeded to look over at Allen and Krory, and finally with a more speculating expression he looked at me. Slowly, the wrinkled and extremely small man, walked toward me.

"You must be Bella Morrison. Komui already told me about you." The old man stated, his right hand appearing under one of the big sleeves and I politely shook it.

"I do not have a name. You can just call me Bookman." He greeted me, glancing at Lavi. "And the brat there is my apprentice, but I am going to assume you have already been introduced to him."

I just nodded. The only thing I actually knew about this man was that he was the head member of the Bookman clan and that Lavi was his apprentice, the next successor of the Bookman clan.

"Ah, Bookman." Allen said, interrupting me while I was desperately trying to search through my brain for some kind of information about this old guy.

"We were just about to go get dinner." Allen went on. "Do you want to come?"

Bookman nodded, still staring at me.

"Link, we're going to get some dinner." Allen shouted in Link's direction, who was sitting on the other end of the training ground. He got up and walked over to the rest of us, as we began to take the stairs leading to the second floor, Bookman literally ordering Lavi to take a shower before dinner, saying he smelled of sweat. Link, Allen, Lavi and I walked down a new hallway I had never been in before on the second floor, (I mean how big was this building anyway?), Bookman walking down to the cafeteria ahead of us.

"This is the girls sanatorium." Allen said, stopping in front of a big light-brown door.

"And down there is the boys sanatorium." Lavi went on, pointing at a door a little farther down the hallway. "Just call if you need something." He smirked, making me roll my eyes at him. _I don't even want to know what he's thinking._

"Let's just meet up in the cafeteria once we're done." Allen suggested, as he Link and Lavi walked toward the other door. I nodded in agreement, before entering the sanatorium. _Yaoi ahead!_

To be honest, I had never even seen a sanatorium before, which was probably the reason I felt so taken aback by seeing this place. In the entire right side of the room, a long terrace in brown bamboos was placed with a lot of drawers build into the wall, where one could put different stuff in it. A matching table was also standing there, with clean towels on it. The rest of the room was pretty much just one big spa, with an eastern-like design to it.

I walked over to the little terrace, taking off all of the sweaty clothes and threw it in one of the drawers before walking down from the terrace. I stuck my toe in the hot water, and then very slowly let both of my legs enter the water, letting myself dump down on the warm, smooth rocks, just sitting and splashing up and down with my feet in the water. There was a lot of steam, so it was kind of hard to see how big the sanatorium actually was, and honestly I didn't have the strength to start exploring this place now. Gently I jumped down from the rock into the water, and started to swim around a bit in the huge stone-bathtub. I grabbed one of the soaps from the big marble-bowl closest to me, and walked through the water toward a small waterfall placed in the left corner of the room, in order to get myself washed properly. At first I founnd it a little difficult having to get used to this spa-like bathroom, stumbling around trying to find the shampoo, and when I finally did find it, I was having trouble washing my hair, but in the end it all worked out fine, I guess.

Finally finishing everything, I took one of the white cotton-towels and wrapped it around me, suddenly realizing something.

"I haven't brought any change of clothes with me…" I mumbled to myself. _Well shit._ I turned my head, looking over at the sweaty clothes I borrowed from Lenalee, for a minute actually considering putting them back on again, but came to the conclusion that it would be too gross.

Making sure the towel I was wearing wouldn't fall off, I picked up the dirty clothes and walked over to the door, opening it up just a little, sneaking a peek through the small crack to make sure no one was around outside. I took three deep breaths, and then at the speed of light, (I hope) sprinted through the hallway, course right for my room, making sure to hold a tight grip around the small towel and, of course, the sweaty clothes in my other hand. Praying and pleading to God that I wouldn't meet anyone, I made it safely to my room, smacking the door tightly behind me as I sighed out in relief. _Holy crap. That has got to be the adrenalin rush of the day._

Probably having used over half an hour in the bath, I hurriedly put on some clean clothes, just taking the first things I found in my bag, and then rushed out of my room.

Making it to the cafeteria, (quite fast if I should say so myself) I asked Jerry to make me a burger, feeling extremely hungry after the training. Finding the bench where Allen, Link, Lavi, Bookman and to my surprise Johnny were sitting at, I took my tray with the newly made burger and briskly walked over to them.

"Ah, Bella! I finished your uniform and clothes for your training." Johnny exclaimed, as I sat down on the bench across from him, Lavi and Bookman.

"Thanks a bunch, Johnny." The first bite of my burger was like a taste of heaven.

"You sure took your time Bella." Lavi grinned at me. _Don't wanna know what he's thinking_

"I'm slow in the bath." I simply answered him. He just laughed at me.

Lavi began to tell Johnny the funny thing that happened to him during his mission with Bookman that he never got to tell him this morning. As he finished his story, Bookman finally said something, having been completely quiet the entire time.

"So Miss Bella, I heard from Komui that Hevlaska gave you a prediction?" The old man's eyes were now resting on me, and I looked up from my meal a little surprised at his sudden "question".

"Yeah, she said something about me being 'the girl who sees through time'," I told him, then added, "I don't know what she meant by it though."

"You too?" Allen asked me, turning his head a little to look at me. Now Lavi and Bookman were both going quiet. I just nodded in response Allen's question.

"Allen you got a prediction from Hevlaska too when you first arrived here, right?" Johnny asked, looking over at Allen.

"Yeah, she said I was a 'time destroyer'." Allen answered Johnny, still looking at me though.

"That sounds a lot more dramatic than mine." I mumbled to him.

"Allen Walker the 'destroyer of time'…" Bookman suddenly murmured, making all eyes turn in his direction, "…And Bella Morrison the 'seer of time'."

"What do you think it means, gramps?" Lavi asked his mentor.

Silence.

I shifted a little uncomfortably in my seat, feeling the unpleasant atmosphere spreading as everybody at the table waited for the old man to say something.

"I guess time will show." Bookman finally said, obviously keeping his theories to himself.

"Maybe the two predictions are connected somehow?" Lavi philosophized, followed by a warning glance from Bookman, which made Lavi go completely silent. _Bookman probably don't want Lavi discussing stuff like this with the rest of us._ Not liking the tense atmosphere that was starting to spread here, I took a last bite of my burger and put the rest of it over on Allen's plait.

"Can you finish that for me?" I asked him, standing up and walking out from the bench.

"Where are you going?" Allen inquired; looking puzzled up from his food tower.

"I'll try to find the library, I feel like reading a book right now."

"I'll go with you, then." Lavi said, getting up from the bench. "I'm done eating anyway."

Bookman looked with a piercing glare over at Lavi again, but the redhead ignored the old man this time.

"I'll stop by your room later with your uniform, Bella." Johnny told me, before Lavi and I left the table in the cafeteria.

In silence we walked toward the library, Lavi leading the way, and I only made sure to pay half attention to where it was. At first I didn't really give Hevlaska's prediction that much thought, but now that I thought about it, it was kind of a weird prediction, I mean what was it supposed to mean 'the seer of time'? Seeing through time… Did it mean I could see the future or something? It would make sense as I had read the manga, and so, knew what would happen – only for a set time though. _But does that mean she knows I'm from another world, or…?_ The thing was, I wasn't really sure whether to tell people about that teeny tiny fact or not. But there was something in my head – like a small voice – that just kept telling me to stay quiet about it…

"Don't let it bother you too much." I suddenly heard Lavi say, ripping me out of my own thoughts. I looked up at him with a blank face expression.

"Allen got his prediction like a year ago, and we still haven't figured out what it means, so don't crack up your brain too much about it, okay?" He smiled at me, trying to be encouraging. I just nodded.

"So, this is the library." Lavi grinned, as we entered a huge room with walls completely hidden behind enormous bookcases, filled up with all kinds of books. There were a few tables with matching chairs in the room and a black leather couch in one of the corners.

Lavi just marched right toward one of the big bookcases and started to look at some of the books there.

"You read books, Lavi?" I asked a little in disbelief, as I walked over to one of the other bookshelves. Somehow he didn't really seem like the kind of guy who read books.

"Of course I do, I'm a Bookman you know. In order to record history I kind of have to read, right?" He said, not really expecting an answer. "Although," he went on, "I do like to read books that has nothing to do with wars and history once in a while." He pulled out a green book from the shelf, looking interested at its cover, before opening it up and turning the pages. "What kinds of books do you like to read, Bella?"

"Mostly fantasy." I answered him, still looking at the different books on the shelf. Lavi looked up from the book he was holding, and stared at me in surprise.

"You like fantasy?" He asked in disbelief, and I could hear a small hint of laughter in his voice.

"Yeah, so?" I snapped a little annoyed. _What is wrong with me liking fantasy?_

"Don't know. You just seem like the kind of person who would be reading stuff like the daily-life of people or boring books about romance."

"Why?"

"I don't know." Lavi shrugged his shoulders.

"Well to your information, I, unlike everyone else here, just recently discovered my Innocence and before doing so, I used to have a normal life." I looked over at Lavi who was just holding his gaze at me. I sighed. "I think most average people in the world miss having that feeling of 'thrill' or 'excitement' to their life – I know I did – which is why I have always loved reading books about fiction and fantasy, because it was the only thing in the world that could actually save me from my normal, boring life. Fiction gives us a second chance that life denies us." I glanced back at the bookshelf, holding my gaze on a big, black book in front of me.

"Well, now you're here." Lavi said, and even though I couldn't see it, I think he was smiling. "Now you can have that 'excitement' in your life."

I smiled to myself, finding relief and joy in his words. I pulled out the black book I had been looking at, and started to look through the pages in it.

"You know Bella," Lavi began, slumping into a nearby chair, "You're the exact opposite of every other exorcist here." He looked up at the gray ceiling.

"How so?"

"Well," he began, "I think everyone else here who is compatible with Innocence, actually wishes for an average and boring life." He looked over at me, a bit of a questioning expression on his face. I just shrugged.

"I guess it's just a natural thing," I explained, still looking through the pages in the black book, "human beings wanting to have something they just can't get, or wanting to have the exact opposite of what they already have." I took a little pause. "Or wanting more than what they already have."

_Huh? I basically just described the previous 'me' before I got here. Heh. This is like a real therapy session._

Silence.

I was waiting for Lavi to say something, and as the minutes passed by without him making any noise, I finally turned around to find him sitting and just looking at me with a wondering expression on his face, as if he was trying to figure something out.

"W-what?" I asked him, hating it when people stared at me too long. Lavi continued to look at me wondering for a few more seconds before changing his face expression.

"Nothing." He grinned at me, and then continued to look through the pages in the book he was holding. _Mental note number nine; Lavi is a weirdo._

I also turned back to looking through the pages in the large book, and I realized that it was about different kinds of myths and legends, a few of them I knew already, but there were a lot I had never even heard of before. Actually finding this kind of stuff interesting, I decided to take it with me to my room, until I had the time and patience to find another book I could read.

And so, both of us feeling really tired, Lavi and I walked up to our rooms, and I realized that the room Lavi and Bookman slept in was only three doors away from my room, which was actually rather comforting to know, so that I wouldn't be staying in this hallway all by myself.

"Night." He said to me, right before walking into his and Bookman's room.

I put the large book of myths on my bedside table, and then started to change into my pajamas, a pair of shorts in cotton and an oversized t-shirt. Having changed, I threw myself down on my stomach at the soft bed and opened up the book I just borrowed from the library, reading it for about fifteen minutes, before someone knocked on my door. Knowing it was Johnny with the finished uniform and training-clothes, I just told him the door was open, being too lazy to walk over and open it up myself.

"Here you go Bella." He said as he placed all of the very nicely amalgamated clothes on top of the chest of drawers and two pair of boots on the floor in front of it.

"Thanks Johnny." I thanked him again, Johnny smiling warmly at me.

"Did you find something interesting to read?" He asked me, walking over to my bed to get a better look of the book I was reading. I moved a little to the left, making space enough for Johnny to sit down on the bed beside me, which he gladly did, still looking interested at the book in front of me.

"It's about different myths." I answered him with a smile.

"That might actually come in handy some day." He laughed, still looking at the book.

"Maybe." I agreed with him. Johnny put his left finger on the page I was currently on, and then used his right hand to turn the pages, making sure not to lose track of the page I had made it to.

"It looks really interesting." He concluded, still turning the pages.

"You can just borrow it when I'm done with it."

"Yeah that'd be great, but honestly I don't think I have the time to read books, you know, with all the work I have to do."

"Alright, then I can just tell you the stories myself once in a while." I encouraged him.

"That'd be great." Johnny exclaimed, getting up from the bed. "I should probably get to bed too."

"Alright, good night then Johnny."

"Good night Bella." Johnny said, as he closed the door after him.

Feeling sleep take its toll, I put the book back on the bedside table and turned off the little bedside lamp, and so, my second day at the Black Order was over.

* * *

**A/N: Chapter 5 is done! So every chapter will most likely be updated in the weekends from now.**

**A quick character insight:**

**So like some of you might (or might not) have noticed, Bella isn't that fond of confrontation and dealing with problems. Whenever some kind of problem occur, she tries to avoid it (like she did when Bookman asked about Hevlaska's prediction, and when Lavi commented that she might be the Heart). This is also the reason you haven't heard her think that much of the cloaked man that sent her in the first place, as she doesn't know how to deal with it, so she simply ignores it and pushes the thought aside. I wasn't really sure how to describe this besides through her actions, as it's something she does unconsciously. So I decided to write it in the author note.**

**Another thing you might have noticed is how Bella's mind is quite different from the way she acts. She acts (mostly) a bit neutral and/or is polite and smiley. This is obviously because she was just removed and thrown into a new environment. I think it's a pretty natural thing for an individual to want to give off a good first impression and be accepted quickly in these situations. I just wanted to point that out. So look forward to when Bella finally settles down, then her true (currently inner) personality will be shown – and most of her weird thoughts will be said aloud.**


	6. Mission Start: Once Upon A Time

I fumbled a little around in my bed, falling in and out of a half-asleep state, until I finally pulled myself together and decided to get out of bed. Still not quite conscious, I stumbled around in my room, probably looking like a zombie trying to find some clean clothes and a hairbrush. I put on a pair of shorts and a white shirt, pulling up the sleeves to my elbows before putting on my shoes and walking out from my room, toward the girl's bathroom. I brushed my teeth and went back to my own room with my stuff, before heading for the cafeteria, feeling my stomach starting to complain.

* * *

I asked Jerry to make me some scrambled egg and honeydew melon, while I tried confused to look for the others. As Jerry finished my tray of breakfast I luckily saw Lavi sitting by himself at one of the tables.

"Where is everybody?" I asked, sitting down beside him on the bench.

"They have already eaten." Lavi laughed at me. "You're really slow in the morning, you know."

"I am _not_ a morning person." I said, making myself very clear. "Besides, you're here too Lavi. Doesn't that mean you're just as slow as me, then?" I asked him cheeky, taking a bite of my scrambled egg.

"Actually, I got up early today. While you were still asleep, I was out training for two hours and even got to take a shower after." He answered me even cheekier and then added. "_And _I got here before you did."

"Well… it's because I don't have an alarm clock." I mumbled, trying to put all the blame on the missing clock. Lavi just laughed at me.

"There you two are."

I looked up from my meal to find Reever walking across the cafeteria toward Lavi and me.

"Hey Reever." Lavi greeted the scientist, taking another bite of his bread. He stopped in front of our table, holding a small stack of paper in his arms.

"You two have a mission."

_Wait…_

"What!?" I exclaimed, almost chocking on my egg. I dropped my fork, coughing for air and trying to either throw up the egg or swallow it.

"Easy there." Lavi laughed, patting me on my bag.

"You okay, Bella?" Reever asked me a little worried. I just nodded, still coughing a bit though. _Mental note number ten; don't choke on food in public. It's awkward for everybody._

"Mission?" I looked up at him. Reever nodded, smiling.

"Don't worry, I saw you at training yesterday, and I'm pretty sure you're ready for your first mission." He answered me. _That was training mate…_

"At any rate, finish up your breakfast and go get changed and then meet up in the Supervisor's office in twenty minutes." Reever said, looking at Lavi and me before leaving again. Hurriedly, we finished our breakfast, turning in the dishes at Jerry's worktop, and then walked to the second floor.

"Nervous?" Lavi asked me, stopping in front of the door that leads to my room.

"A little bit, maybe." I murmured, looking at the door handle. _What do you expect? As far as I know, people get killed on missions – and I literally just got here two days ago!_

"Well, hurry up and get changed and then we'll go to Komui's office." He said, walking a few meters down the hall to his own room. I just nodded before walking in to my own room.

* * *

So my uniform pretty much consisted of the same black, tight jacket with silver trimmings and the Rose Cross by the chest as all other uniforms – though the sleeves on mine were remarkably larger from the elbow and down (Johnny said it would be easier for me to use my Innocence this way apparently). He also made me a pair of fingerless gloves, to keep my fingers from getting bruised, and a pair of large brown boots. From there on though it got a bit tricky, as Johnny (for some reason) really wanted me to wear a skirt – and though I' would admit it looked cute when Lenalee jumped around in one of those things – I couldn't exactly see myself fighting in a bloody miniskirt (what if I jumped and someone saw my underwear? How Lenalee avoided that was a mystery to me). So I got him to meet me halfway, meaning I was now stuck with some thigh-long, black leggings and a skirt that was ripped on either side of the thigh. Not really sure how to feel about it to be honest.

"This is going to take a while to put on." I mumbled to myself, looking at one of the knee-length boots, with one long lace, starting from the middle of the foot and then went all the way up to the end of the boot. I tried to look for some kind of hidden zipper, which I didn't find, and sighing I put on each boot with a little difficulty. _Not exactly convenient if I have to hurry some time._

Finishing each damn shoelace, I jumped up from the bed, stretching my arms and limbs to get used to the uniform, realizing how incredibly comfortable it actually was, surprisingly enough even more comfortable than the clothes we train in, if that was even possible.

* * *

Without even knocking, Lavi just walked right into Komui's office, followed by me, being a little more discrete and hesitant. Komui just smiled at us though, Reever standing behind him, holding some papers. Lavi headed right for the couch, dumping down on it beside of Kanda, who was also wearing his uniform. The blue-haired exorcist was looking quite uninterested the other way, obviously trying to ignore Lavi. _I guess Rapunzel is coming too. Hallelujah – I hope that means my chances of survival will increase._

"Please Bella, sit down." Komui offered. Completely lost in my own thoughts, I jumped in surprise before sitting down on the couch.

"So," Komui began, looking at me, "I know this is your first mission Bella, and you must be really nervous, but please don't worry too much." He smiled friendly to me, and then looked over at Lavi and Rapunzel. "Besides, you will have both Lavi and Kanda with you, and they are both very skilled exorcists."

"Why, thank you." Lavi grinned mischievously; Kanda just ignored the compliment, still looking the other way.

"At any rate, I'm going to give you a quick summary of the mission, and then we'll send you off." Komui pointed toward the papers Reever was holding. "More detailed information is held on the forms Reever will be giving to you as you move out."

I nodded, letting Komui know I got everything so far, and he took a sip of his coffee, before starting his summary of the mission.

"There is a high possibility that we have discovered Innocence in Sarnico, which is a small city located by Italy's fourth largest lake, Lake Iseo." Komui began, pulling in a string, making a big map appear and he pointed at our destination – Italy.

"You haven't confirmed it yet?" Kanda growled, now looking at Komui.

"Not quite." Komui answered Kanda's question. "The thing is, we did in fact send a few Finders out to confirm the presence of the Innocence."

"However," Komui went on, now looking very serious at all three of us, "we haven't heard anything from any of the Finders we have sent off, meaning they have likely been killed or for some reason can't get in contact with headquarters."

"By Akuma?" Lavi asked. Komui nodded, answering Lavi's question.

"In this case, it is highly likely that there is Innocence involved."

Reever handed out the paper to us, and feeling a little creeped out, I looked through the three pieces of paper. _Nice first mission… he couldn't have sent us somewhere with flying ponies and pink bears eating marshmallows?_

"Your job is to destroy the possible enemy and secure the Innocence." Komui finally said, making the order very clear.

"Got it." Lavi stated, him and Rapunzel getting up from the couch and following Reever who was about to head out of the room. Not wanting to get left behind, I hurriedly got up from the couch and ran after them, but ended up getting stopped by Komui. I looked up at him in confusion, considering for a second that he might have actually changed his mind about letting me go on this mission.

"Good luck, Bella." He just smiled at me, lightly patting me on the head before stepping aside to let me pass. _I guess he really does worry about all of us._ I thought as I ran after the other three guys.

"Oh, there you are." Lavi said as I ran up beside him, Kanda walking on the other side of him and Reever leading the way through the big hallways, into an entirely new part of the building that I had never been in before.

"This is the White Ark." Reever told me, stopping in front of a huge white portal-like thing, placed in a room, filled up with hardworking scientists. He quickly explained to me how they got their hands on it and how it worked.

Obviously, I spaced out.

"What about the route?" Lavi asked Reever, completely changing the subject.

"You will take the Gate to Brescia and then from there take a train to Sarnico, which is a ride on approximately thirty minutes. A Finder is already waiting for you by the Gate in Brescia." Reever answered Lavi's question.

"Alright, heads up you three!" Reever shouted, now speaking to all of us. "The Gate will open in twenty seconds. Now remember, it's Gate number 32 okay?"

I just nodded, not sure exactly what he meant, but hopefully Lavi and Kanda knew what he was talking about. Reever pointed over at the Ark Gate, where the number 32 suddenly appeared right above it.

"Permission to enter."

I looked over at Kanda, who approached the large white Gate, not even hesitating the slightest as he walked into it, literally disappearing in mid-air as if there was an invisible room. As Kanda completely disappeared through the white Gate, Lavi followed right after, vanishing along with him. And I, being completely taken aback from seeing this, (despite having read the manga) just stood here totally bewildered. Reever actually had to come over and gently give me a little push in the back to make me go through it.

"Good luck!" He yelled after me, as I hesitantly walked through the Gate.

It really was the same as walking through a door, from one room to another. On the other side of the Gate, I entered a huge unpopulated city with a kind of Mediterranean-style, all of the buildings being completely white. There were a few flowers and green plants here and there, and for a minute I just stood here in the bright alley, staring at the unbelievably beautiful city.

"It was Gate 32, right?" I heard Kanda ask from somewhere behind me, Lavi answering his question a little after with a simple 'yes'.

"Then it's right over there." Kanda stated still in his, probably, permanent foul mood. I turned around to find Lavi following Kanda, heading toward one of the billions of white doors; the only thing different about this one, was that the number 32 was floating above it. I ran after the two exorcists, barely making it up behind Lavi as Kanda opened the door and walked through it, followed by Lavi. I let myself have a last glance of the stunning city, before running through the Gate.

"Where are we?" I asked nervously, honestly thinking we went through the wrong Gate or something, as I stepped into a ruin-like town. It didn't seem to be very big, but the old, cracking houses told me the town must have been abandoned for a while now. It was dead quiet too, with an exception for some really scary cracking noises coming from the old buildings.

"The old town of Brescia." An unfamiliar voice answered my question, and I moved a little to the left, looking past Kanda, in order to see who it was. Honestly it wouldn't surprise me if it was a ghost or something like that. Luckily it wasn't.

"I am Kie." The Finder in his mid-twenties smiled at me. He was pretty tall, almost as tall as Komui, and he had shaggy blond hair, and of course, wearing the long beige-colored jacket that all of the Finders had to wear.

"Nice to meet you, my name -" I started, wanting to greet him as politely as possible, but got interrupted by Kanda.

"Save the introductions for later, we're on a mission now." He growled, sounding just as cold-hearted as he looked like. _Why does he have to be so rude? _Rapunzel turned around, looking over at Kie. "Where is the way out of this place?"

"This way." The Finder answered, pointing down one of the small streets, before starting to lead us the way out of this abandoned town. One thing I was sure of; I would have never found my way out of this place on my own. I probably would have had a heart attack before making it halfway, if I was by myself.

Luckily Kie knew his way around this place – which I suppose was his job after all – and eventually after about ten minutes we made it to the outside of the town. I stared in awe as we were now standing in the outskirts of the _real_ part of Brescia. It was situated at the foot of the Alps, and was a lot larger than I had imagined. It was also a lot brighter and livelier than the old part of town we just came from.

"So, what now?" I asked, staring in wonder as we slowly made it into the town. Kids were running across the courtyard and playing, while a lot of the adults were buying and selling stuff by a market.

"There is a train station in the other end of the town." Kie answered me, picking up his speed. "But we have to hurry, if we don't want to miss the train."

And so, we started to jog toward the station, which then eventually turned into sprinting after the train, because the train was about to depart, and we barely ended up catching it, all of us literally having to jump aboard the train as it drove away from the station (never doing that again, by the way).

I bent over, panting heavily as one of the train conductors came over, looking rather taken aback because of the fact that four citizens just illegally jumped on the train.

"E-excuse me, passengers. This is the 1st class coupé and normal citizens are supposed to be in the 2nd class. Besides you just came in like-" He started, but Kie interrupted him.

"We are the black priests. Please get a room ready."

The conductor looked a little confused at all four of us, before noticing the Rose Cross on Kanda's uniform.

"Y-yes, sir!" He bowed, showing us the way through the train, stopping in front of one of the many red doors, leading to a compartment. I followed Kanda and Lavi into the room; Kie closed the door after us, but stayed on the other side of the door out in the hallway.

"Isn't he coming into the coupé with us?" I asked, sitting down beside of Lavi, Kanda sitting across from us.

"Finders are just here to support us exorcists. They don't need the same treatment as us." Kanda answered coldly, pulling out the papers Reever gave us before departure. _Wow, that's kind of harsh._ I glanced over at Lavi, who was also sitting and skimming through the sheds of papers. He noticed my glance and finished the last page, before looking up, turning toward me.

"So," he began, "according to the information Reever gave us, there are apparently theories of a church being cursed in the town we're headed to."

"Cursed, how?" I asked, already feeling the hair on the back of my neck rising.

"Something about people entering the church and then not returning." Lavi looked out the window.

"Sounds like a load of crap to me." Kanda mumbled.

"Komui said that they hadn't heard anything from any of the Finders they had sent off to the town, right?" I asked, looking at both Kanda and Lavi. Lavi nodded.

"Then they could be trapped in the church or something." I went on, trying to philosophize over the head-scratcher.

"Probably, but we can't jump to conclusions." Lavi answered me, still looking out the window.

"It was just a theory." I murmured to myself under the uniform's collar.

"Apparently," I suddenly heard Kie say, coming from the other side of the door, "a priestess used to live in the church 5 years ago. She was described as a stunningly beautiful young woman, with a talent for singing."

I shifted to be able to hear what he said better, and so did Lavi. Kanda was sitting completely still, his left leg crossed over his right.

"Every midnight, the priestess would ring the bell at the tower of the church, while singing out a certain song. Some of the townsfolk even used to stay up all night and come to the church, only with the intentions of wanting to hear the young priestess's beautiful voice. She was said to be the small towns 'light'. However she died of disease while she was still quite young. Even though she died, the same bell she had used to ring every single night while singing, for some reason, never stopped ringing during midnight. Since the priestess was the only one who lived at the church, it is quite a mystery as to why the bell keeps ringing, despite the church being completely abandoned. Lots of townsfolk have entered the church, trying to find the source for this, however, none of them ever returned from the church. People eventually started to call the church cursed and no one has dared to even go near it for years now."

I shivered as Kie finished the story, small goose pimples starting to take form on my body. I started to mumble out swears and cusses in my own language, mainly targeting Komui for sending me on such a creepy first mission, _I mean come on_, why did it have to be something about old cursed churches, I bet there would be lots of graveyards too! It was common sense never to seek out the truth about things involving dead people and cursed things.

"Komui din narrøv." I finally snarled at Komui, before I noticed that I was getting weird looks from Lavi and Kanda.

"What did you just say?" Lavi laughed confused. I just shrugged my shoulders, looking the other way so that none of them will see me blushing.

"Nothing in particular…"

"At any rate," Lavi moved on, Kanda looking out the window still with an uninterested face expression, "maybe the theory about the Finders being trapped inside the church isn't that much off after all, Bella."

I looked over at Lavi, who was now looking out the window like Kanda, philosophizing over our new mission. I nodded, rather pleased with myself.

Realizing that Kie had been awfully quiet for a while now, I began to feel sorry for him, having to sit outside the compartment and all. Just because Finders didn't have Innocence, they were stuck with the short end of the straw. It really didn't seem fair to me, and so, I decided to get up and talk a little with him on the other side of the door.

The blond Finder looked up at me in confusion, as I came out from the coupé. He was sitting on the floor, right beside the door; so I let myself slowly slide down on the black carpet beside him. Even though I couldn't remember ever hearing much about Finders in the manga, it somehow felt like I had seen Kie a couple of times before. I tried to search through my brain for any memory of this guy, as fast as I could, but nothing came to my mind, and I ended up eventually giving up.

"So, for how long have you been in the order, Kie?" I finally asked him. His face instantly lit up, this was probably one of the few times an exorcist asked a Finder personal questions.

"I came here a few months ago." He said, smiling just as bright as a little kid on Christmas Eve. "I used to work for the owner of a large brothel in China which secretly supported the Black Order, along with Chaoji." _That's right!_ I remembered now. The entire story got a free run in my head, before Kie began to tell it.

"My boss, Anita, helped the exorcists get to Japan by ship. During the trip though, Akuma attacked us on the ship, resulting in almost everyone losing their lives during the attack. Thanks to the exorcists, Chaoji, me and another friend of ours, survived the battle, and not long after we discovered that Chaoji had Innocence, resulting in all of us joining the Order, Chaoji becoming an exorcist and Maosa and me becoming Finders." _Wow._

"It's nice of you two to come all the way to the Black Order, just so that Chaoji wouldn't have to join all by himself." I said, making sure to smile at Kie, who just smiled back at me.

"Well, we couldn't just leave Chaoji by himself like that."

I smiled softly at Kie's words, turning my head to look out the window on the wall across from me, when I suddenly realized something. My eyes completely fixated on the window, I got up from the floor and walked toward it, feeling Kie's gaze following me as I stopped in front of the train's window. A thick gray fog was starting to appear outside, only getting deeper as the train continued to move into it, making it seem like it was already night-time, though I'm sure it was still afternoon.

"Kie, look at this." I mumbled, not letting my eyes draw aside even for a second as Kie got up and walked over beside me.

"We must be getting close to Sarnico now." He told me, only taking a quick glance out the window, before going back to the spot where he sat, this time he stood up though.

Fearing something might actually appear in the dark forest outside – which by the way was really hard to get a good look at because of the fog – I ended up standing completely still in front of the window, keeping a good eye on it, while touching the fans in the back of my belt with my fingertips, ready to strike any moment if something happened. I swear, I had never seen anything like this, the fog just kept getting more and more thick as the minutes passed by, and eventually I could barely see the trees of the forest anymore. Suddenly though, I noticed a little sheen of light ahead of us, and as the train closed in on it, I realized that it was the light coming from a small town.

Not quite having made it to the city yet, the train stopped, and Kie got up and opened the door to the room Lavi and Kanda were sitting in, telling them we had arrived. A little annoyed with the train not escorting us all the way _into_ the town, I followed the three guys out from the train, we being the only ones who have to get off here, and the train drove away, disappearing into the fog during seconds.

_I'm gonna die…_

Sighing I walked behind Kie, leading the way, and I made sure to be in the middle of Kanda and Lavi, just in case something were to sneak up on us, they were the ones who would get snatched first One time, I accidently screamed out in shock, as Kanda stepped on a loose stick, making Lavi tease me the rest of the way to the town by scaring me and speaking in different creepy, dark voices.

_I might not even make it to the town alive…_

* * *

**A/N: Yes! Bella is finally going on her first mission. This'll be fun as she tends to be a bit jumpy, overdramatic and underestimates herself from time to time. Thanks for reading, and thanks to those of you who adds this story as favs, story alert and reviews. I love getting advice and feedback so please keep it up :)**

**Translation:**

\- Din narrøv: You asshole (yep, Bella just called Komui an asshole)


	7. The Cursed Church Within the Silent Town

After a walk for what felt like ages, with Lavi almost startling me to death every second (yelling stuff like, "Look Bella, it's the Boogeyman!") and Kanda snarling and shouting at us for being too loud, we eventually made it to the inside of the foggy town.

I looked around in puzzlement; the town seeming close to abandoned, only a few people were actually walking around on the old-looking streets, a lot of the houses had started to crumble and falter. This entire town just seemed downright empty, and I did not think it was because of the fog that people stayed indoors.

"What now?" I asked, having vexed feelings mainly targeting creepiness and feeling lost.

"We should probably ask the villagers for information." Kie answered me. _Good luck with that._ "We'll split up and meet back here once it gets dark." He finally added. _It's already dark mate. _I looked from Lavi to Kanda, hoping at least one of them would disagree with Kie about this, but they both just nodded, completely agreeing with him.

"T-then shouldn't we split up in two groups?" I asked, trying to somehow find a way to get around not having to be in this town by myself.

"We'll get more information if we _all four _split up." Kanda said, putting extra pressure on 'all four'. I sighed, feeling the hopelessness take over. _Yeah I'm not that fond of creepy, abandoned towns._

"I can just walk along with Miss Bella." Kie suddenly said, followed by an irritated look from Kanda, probably thinking it was pathetic how I couldn't even take care of myself. To my relief, Lavi agreed with this, and so, we walked into three different directions hoping to get more information.

It turned out as I thought; it was a lot harder finding information about this so called 'cursed church'. Whenever Kie and I actually found a villager to ask, we only ended up with things we already knew beforehand. As it slowly started to become dark, we went back to the meeting place, completely empty-handed.

* * *

"So, did you two find anything useful?" Kie asked Kanda and Lavi. We were currently sitting in a small inn, which besides us, was completely empty. I looked up at Lavi beside me and then at Kanda on the other side of the table.

"Nope. Nothing we didn't already know beforehand." Lavi answered us, leaning back in the black bench, putting both of his arms on the backrest. Kanda shook his head, also answering Kie's question.

"Neither did we." I sighed as a tired-looking waiter comes over with four bowls of spaghetti with meatballs, which was the only thing they had here. Feeling the sudden hunger from not having gotten any lunch today, I happily started to eat the meal (which tasted fine, but not anywhere near as good as Jerry's) and so did everybody else, accept for Kanda. A little confused I looked up at the grumpy exorcist.

"You're not going to eat?" I asked puzzled. He just looked the other way, clicking his tongue in annoyance.

"Yu doesn't eat anything else but soba." Lavi laughed, his mouth full of food. _That's right. I completely forgot._

"Even though I didn't get any information," Lavi began a little more serious now, "one of the villagers told me where the church is. I think we're gonna have to check it out eventually – with or without any new information."

"I guess there is nothing else for us to do at this point." Kie said. I just nodded, not liking the idea of going to a place where people had been disappearing for years now.

"We have to be around when the bell rings, though." Kanda interjected, obviously listening to the conversation even though his face told otherwise sometimes. "This has something to do with either the bell or the deceased priestess."

"This all happened _after _the priestess died, right?" I asked to no one in particular, I just needed to see if my theory was correct. Both Kie and Lavi nodded to my question, Kanda just looked at me with a blank face expression.

"She was also quite young; had her whole life ahead of her." I went on in a more concluding tone now. "Then, maybe her spirit just haven't found salvation yet, and so she keeps on haunting the church by ringing the bell every night."

I looked at everyone at the table, all three of them thinking a little bit, before Lavi piped up.

"It's a nice theory, but it's just a little too superstitious for it to be true." _Sure, the thought of ghosts is too superstitious, but weird superpowers given to people by God and Akuma being born from the sadness of human beings is not?_ A little annoyed I shrugged my shoulders, finishing up my meal, before I leaned back in the bench. _Hypocrites…_

"At any rate," Kie said, also finishing up his meal, "it's getting dark, and if we want to investigate the church before it becomes midnight, we should get going."

Lavi, Kanda and I walked outside while Kie paid for the bill, and when I say 'pay' I mean he just told the waiter that the Black Order would charge for us. And so, we followed Lavi leading the instructed way to the church, which turned out to be at the outskirts of the town. As we walked through the small alleys, I noticed the fog had started to lift, now revealing a white-shining perfectly round full moon on the sky. The stars weren't visible though, because of the dark clouds floating back and forth, sometimes completely covering up the moon, and honestly this reminded me of a scene that would appear in some kind of werewolf horror movie.

_Don't you dare throw werewolves at me._

I made sure to only stand a few inches away from Kanda as we stopped in front of the huge abandoned church, behind us a small and untouched harbor was placed, with no ships whatsoever at it. The church had been made solely of black bricks, and two brown towers were raging above it. I let my eyes rest on the tower longest away from us, which looked to be the one where the bell was hanging, but the distance and the darkness of the night was keeping me from actually confirming it. I then glanced over at the enormous brown door, a round clock hanging above it, and I would assume that it had stopped working given the fact that the hour hand was pointing at two and the minute hand was pointing at five. Suddenly Kanda moved forward, making me jump in surprise, and as fast as possible, I moved over to Lavi's side.

"The villagers said that the priestess is buried here." Kanda said, as he walked up toward the church, and then turned around. "Well, are you coming?" He snapped irritated. To my horror, Lavi and Kie walked after Kanda, kind of forcing me to go along with them.

_That's a great idea! Let's check out the place where our diseased main suspect is buried._

We walked past the church, on the other side of it a big graveyard – probably untouched for years – was standing, with hundreds of old gravestones.

"The priestess's name was Daniela Miazzi." Kie said, silently urging us to look for that name. I ended up grabbing a hold of Lavi's sleeve, following him around, as I didn't dare be by myself. We walked from stone to stone and read the names of each deceased person, before Kie called out for us, saying he found the priestess. We ran up to the gravestone he was standing in front of, which actually looked to be one of the more newly made stones. I let my eyes run across the writing, confirming that this was the place where the diseased priestess was buried as I read _Daniela Miazzi_ and below that a year and date that wasn't readable.

"Are we going to dig up the corpse?" I asked, trying to hide the disgust and fear in my voice. I looked up at Lavi, who shook his head, before squatting down in front of the gravestone, making me let go of his sleeve. He ran his gloved hand over the earth in front of the stone.

"I don't sense anything." He mumbled, looking up at Kanda with a speculating face.

"Then let's check out the church." Kanda finally said, after having stood a little in silence. Lavi got up, and then we all went the same way around the church, course for the door this time.

"EXCORCISTS." A robotic voice suddenly grinned out above us.

"Akuma!" Kanda shouted. I had barely lifted my head to look up, before I saw a large three-headed metal creature, fly right toward Lavi and I, so fast I couldn't react to this in any way possible.

But Lavi could.

The redhead quickly reached down to the holster at his thigh, grapping the small metal hammer as he with his other hand pulled me behind him.

"Big hammer, little hammer!" He raised the hammer above his head. "Grow! Grow!" The size of his hammer increased at the same rate as he yelled. "GROW!"

He threw the hammer down in front of us, just as the Akuma shot down at us with the two missiles growing out from its back and the hammer, now having grown five times bigger than Lavi himself, shielded both of us from being hit in the last second. _Sweet mother of nature that was too close!_

The three-headed Akuma stopped its attack, looking a little annoyed and confused at the large hammer, and Lavi took this into his advantage. Without any hesitation, Lavi charged right for the Akuma, raising the hammer way above his head. Before the Akuma could react to this, Lavi threw his hammer on top of it, completely squashing the Akuma against the ground, which started to shake as the heavy metal hammer dropped on it.

I breathed out, but immediately regret it, as I saw another Akuma, this one shaped like an enormous bird, charge right for Lavi. Panicking, I was about to call out for Lavi, but he had already seen it and raised his weapon again, swinging it against the Akuma and hitting it with such violent force that the Akuma exploded in mid-air.

Not quite having gotten a grasp of the current situation we were in, I stumbled back in fright and panic, and glanced over at Kanda; Kie having moved completely out of the way for him. The blue-haired exorcist pulled a long, sharp katana up from the holster by his side, as an Akuma having taken the shape of a knight, came toward him.

"Mugen, activate." Activating his weapon, Kanda swung it around once, and then quickly cut the knight in two pieces, followed by cutting down two other Akuma behind it.

"Bella!"

I jumped in surprise as I heard someone shout out my name, and I turned around to find Lavi a few yards away, swinging his hammer at another Akuma.

"More are coming, Bella! Activate your weapon!" He shouted, pointing up at something in the sky. I followed his hand and saw to my horror a herd of Akuma coming this way. I could practically feel my heart beating with the same speed of that of a rabbit, and my hands were close to shaking out of pure terror for the creatures approaching us.

"There might be many, but they're only level 2." Kanda growled a few yards behind me, making me eye him with disbelief. _Only level 2? But I have only fought level 1's upon till now!_

I took a deep breath to try and calm myself down, grabbing both of my fans in the back of my belt. _Activate! _They both glowed the familiar green color for a second as they were activated.

I ran up to Lavi's side as the first Akuma in the herd charged for us, and I threw the fan in my right hand at it. The fan flew in an oval line like a boomerang, passing the card-shaped Akuma and completely disappearing behind it.

"Ha, you missed!" It grinned at me in mock. But I just smirked back.

"Not quite."

Before the Akuma could perceive it, the black fan came flying back, and it flew right through the Akuma, making a big gapping hole appear in the middle of it, right before the Akuma exploded. I caught the fan with my right hand as it came back to me, feeling quite proud of myself.

"Nice going there." Lavi smiled at me, before gently pushing me aside. "But we need to get rid of them all at once before they spread out."

I looked up at the herd; some of the Akuma had already started to disappear in different directions. I glanced back to Lavi who had now raised his hammer above his head again.

"Innocence, Level 2. Release."

I watched fascinated as several green circles with different signs inside them surrounded Lavi in a larger circle.

"Hellfire and ash." He mumbled as he hit one of the stamps with the hammer, the encircled sign taking form on the hammer where he hit it. He swung the hammer around one time, before making a light jump in the air, placing both of his hands on the metal handle, he swung the hammer at the ground with brutal force, making the same stamp appear on the grass, only ten times larger than before. I took a few steps back to get out of the encircled sign just as Lavi landed on the edge of it.

"Fire seal!"

A huge torrent of flames, slowly taking the form of a gigantic snake, came out from the stamp. It swirled around in the air, before Lavi pointed at the herd of Akuma. Following Lavi's orders in one swift move, the snake charged right for the Akuma, opening up its mouth and completely swallowing all of them up, before slowly disappearing again, leaving no trace of the Akuma behind.

"That was amazing." I gaped up in awe at the disappearing snake, completely taken aback.

"Yeah, but don't relax yet." Lavi walked over beside me, looking up at the sky. "There are still some left."

"Son of a-!"

I turned around along with Lavi, as I heard Kanda snarling. A 7 feet tall bipedal creature with jagged teeth and wearing, what looked like, medieval red armor covering its entire body, was standing with a raised fist above Kanda's head, Kanda defending himself from the clenched fist with his sword.

"Level 3!" Lavi exclaimed, charging right at it with a raised weapon, ready to help Kanda. The level 3 pulled back its fist, and dodged the swinging hammer in the last second.

"I'll be going then." It grinned, suddenly disappearing across the church. I blinked in confusion, never having seen anything move so fast before, but I got proven wrong as Kanda at least as fast, passed by me.

"Kanda!" I exclaimed, suddenly feeling incredibly slow myself.

"It's heading for the graveyards!" He yelled back, not slowing down even for a second. "If the Innocence really is there, we can't let them have it!"

Wanting to help Kanda I tried to run after him, but a new shark-looking Akuma blocked my way. Before I could react, the Akuma took the opportunity and punched me with a clenched fist right in the stomach, so hard I flew backwards, Lavi catching me right before I hit the hard stonewall on the church. I coughed out in pain, while at the same time panting for air; all of the oxygen in my lungs was just punched out.

"Bella, are you okay?" Lavi asked, putting me down on the ground, as he was forced to turn around to kill the damn thing. Knowing I couldn't just slack off while Lavi did all the work, I trembling got on my feet, as I suddenly realized something.

In between ragged breaths, I let the entire mission have a free run in my head, very thoroughly thinking about each piece of information we had received.

In the moment the priestess died the bell started to ring by itself, followed by the villagers _entering_ the church and _then_ disappearing. Daniela lied buried _outside_ the church, and the bell was _inside _the church. If Daniela herself had the Innocence, it would have stopped activating in the moment she died, but instead it obviously began to somehow activate even more.

A little irritated I never actually realized this, I mentally face palmed myself. It was the bell that had the Innocence; I mean come on it was so obvious! I cannot believe I never saw this, even though all of the evidence pointed toward this, I just kept thinking it had something to do with Daniela not having found salvation yet.

Finally starting to feel better, I looked around to see more Akuma coming toward us, this time from various sides, and I knew that telling Lavi and Kie this now would only cause all of the Akuma to head right for the bell at the tower.

"Lavi!"

Startled by my sudden outburst, Lavi turned around to look at me. "You can take care of the Akuma by yourself, right?"

Even though I already knew he could kill them by himself, I still wanted to confirm it. A little puzzled Lavi nodded in answer to my question and I could see he was about to open up his mouth to say something, probably to ask what for. But I knew that this would be my only chance before another attack would come, and so, I turned on my heels and ran the last way up to the huge entrance at the church. I took a firm grip on each of the door handles and with all of my strength; pulled up the heavy doors, which quite unwillingly opened with a high creek, and I ran inside the church, before they closed again.

_Dark._

Everything was completely black. I stood still, waiting for my eyes to get used to the dark. A few minutes passed by, as I listened to the fight outside between Lavi, Kanda and the Akuma – and when I finally got a grasp of my surroundings, I took a few steps forward. On the other side of the room, a golden altar was placed; above it was hanging a black cross. I let my gaze follow the cross and then up the ceiling, closely looking at the different patterns of ornaments on it, almost looking as if they were telling a story. I slowly made my way down the aisle, letting my right hand slide across the old pews being made solely of tree. Suddenly I stopped though, seeing that something was sitting on one of the pews closest to the altar.

And I realized I wasn't alone in here.

* * *

**A/N: Cliffhanger! I like cliffhangers, they make it more suspenseful. Also, I just realized how much of a scaredy-cat Bella actually is. Hopefully she'll get over that soon enough. Thanks for reading, hope you liked it :D**


	8. One Creepy Clown and a Glowing Wrench?

I stumbled back in fright as I saw the four, cloaked figures sitting ahead of me, completely still. Ready to kill whatever it was, I got in a fighting position, holding a firm grip on each of my fans. Slowly I took one step at a time toward them, starting to feel a little puzzled about the fact that they hadn't turned around yet, I mean I hadn't exactly been quiet. As I got closer, getting a better look of them, I noticed the beige-colored cloaks looked awfully familiar to the one Kie was wearing. _Finders?_

"H-hey! Are you alright?"

I lowered my weapon as I ran over to the four Finders, still sitting completely still and not answering my question. A little confused I lightly put my hand on the shoulder of the Finder closest to me, as I walked up beside him.

"What the-"

As I finally saw their faces, I ended up flinching in shock. Even though their eyes were wide open, the pupils were somehow frightening big, making it seem like they were all in some sort of trance. I let my eyes slide down to the Finder's chest, confirming that he was still alive as I saw it rise and fall, indicating that he was breathing.

"H-hey…" With a firmer grip now, I tried to shake some life into him, doing it more and more violently as he didn't respond to this, even coming to the point where I with the palm of my hand, slapped him so hard across the face that a red shape of my hand appeared on his cheek. But he didn't respond at all, and neither did any of the other Finders.

Feeling completely lost I took a few steps back, trying to figure out what to do with them, as I suddenly tripped over something and with a loud bump fell to the floor, a sting of pain being thrown up my tailbone. A little annoyed with this, I reached out for whatever it was I just fell over, thoroughly looking at the hard smooth and white object in my hand. Feeling a sting of fright in my stomach, I slowly glanced down at the same crunching objects beneath me, before I actually realized what it was.

I screamed out of fright, throwing away the white object in my hand, as I stumbled on my feet and in disgust walked back from the huge pile of now crushed old bones. And to my horror I realized that this wasn't just some random bones from animals, as I saw a broken skull shaped like that of a human's.

_Oh my god, I think I'm gonna puke._ I took another step back as I saw more bones - uncrushed though. _1…2…3…4…_ I counted up to twelve human skeletons; spread all over the church floor, a few of them was placed on the pews.

Feeling my stomach tossing and turning, I stumbled over to the corner of the church closest to me, and let all of the food I had ingested today come back up until there was nothing left but a stinging and burning liquid. I coughed, standing in a bended position and making sure everything got up, as I suddenly felt a presence behind me.

I turned around in the last second to find a clown-shaped Akuma standing in front of me, right before it grabbed my arm with its long, sharp fingers and threw me across the church, making me hit the wall so hard that a crumbling mark was left behind. I groaned in pain as it came toward me with a raised razor-sharp hand, a menacing grin on its face.

"DIE EXCORCIST!"

I bent in my knees right before the clown threw its hand toward my head, dodging its attack in the last second. I glanced up at its hand, which was now stuck in the wall because of the enormous force, and I took this as my opportunity to swoop under the arm of the Akuma, running toward the pile of bones where I left my fans when I tripped.

Picking up my weapon, I turned around to face the nightmarish-clown. I threw the fan in my right hand at it, making it fly right toward the Akuma's head, but with its unstuck razor-hand, the Akuma avoided my attack by punching away the fan, making a high metallic squeak as they hit each other. I ran a little to the left, catching my fan.

"Your weapon won't have any effect on me, exorcist." The clown grinned at me, before with a little difficulty pulling out the hand in the wall. Mockingly he raised both of the metal claws at me, while sticking out his tongue. "My hands are solely made of iron. Your little fans can't possibly break them."

_Argh, for crap's sake…_

I gritted my teeth together in annoyance, knowing what he said was probably true. At this rate, the fight was going to end in a tie between our weapons. And if this battle had to be settled in a fist-to-fist fight, I think I would be the one to loose.

Desperately I tried to search through my brain for any kind of ideas, as a loud _dong_ suddenly rumbled through the church. I looked puzzled around, trying to find the source for the sound as I suddenly heard it again and then again, before it hit me. _It's the church bell._ The bell in the church had started to ring, because it was midnight.

Fascinated I listened to the calming sound of the bell, as I realized it wasn't just clanging randomly like a church bell usually does, but it was ringing some sort of melody. And somehow it felt like I had heard it before…

Suddenly a buzzing sort of noise was overwhelming the room, and I looked behind me, over at the four Finders who were now sitting and humming along on the melody the bell was ringing.

"Miss Bella!"

I jumped in surprise as I suddenly heard someone calling out for me, and I turned around toward the door leading to the outside to find Kie walking through the entrance. Realizing that I was in the middle of a fight, I hurriedly called out for him.

"Kie, don't come in here!"

The Finder shot me a confused look. His eyes dilated in shock as he looked to the site, noticing the Akuma on the other side of the room, before his face went completely blank and he just stopped abruptly.

"What are you doing? Get out of here!" I yelled at him, but he just stood there, completely still, before getting the same dead-looking wide eyes like the other four Finders had. He walked right across the aisle, passing by me and then dumped down on one of the pews beside the other Finders.

_What…?_

"What's wrong with you?" I whispered, feeling my stomach squirm with worry and confusion as I looked after Kie, who was now trying to hum along on the melody.

"H-hey! Kie!" I tried to reach out for him, but something grabbed my arm before I could get a grip of him. A sudden pain shot through my arm, coming from the place where I was grabbed right above my elbow.

I turned around to see the razor-sharp claws of the clown, having buried itself in my left arm; a red warm liquid had started to run down my arm, dripping and staining the floor. Before I could yank back my arm, the Akuma threw me across the church again, this time though I managed to break the fall by staying on my feet. The bell had been playing for a few minutes now, and I knew the song was nearing its end, meaning I had to hurry up and finish this fight off if I wanted to find out the truth about the bell and the Innocence. Still thinking for ideas on how to beat the Akuma, I suddenly remembered something I was told when the cloaked guy gave it to me:

"_This weapon is solely made from your memories. It is made out of your own ideas on how you have always wanted it to function. Look deep inside your mind and remember what your own thoughts was of this Innocence."_

Letting the words have a free run in my head, I slowly started to remember everything of how I wanted my Innocence to possess elemental attacks with different seals and levels, even coming as far as writing it all down on a piece of paper that I then hid under my bed. If my weapon functioned _that_ way, I already knew how to exercise the Akuma. _Guess it can't hurt to try._ Holding a firm grip on both of the fans now, I raised my arms a little.

"First opening, First seal." I swung both of my arms, holding a tight grip on my weapon, as a vortex of wind was made from the fans, having course right for the clown and trapping it inside a huge whirlwind. Small cuts were starting to appear on the Akuma all over its body, coming from the vortex.

"What is this!?" Aggressively the Akuma tried to run away from the cutting vortex, but it just followed him around, not stopping its attack even for a second. Deciding I needed to finish this quickly before the bell stopped ringing, I made a last swing with the fan in my hand, sending a thin blade of wind after the clown, severing its upper body from its legs. The Akuma exploded, making the entire church shake a little from the sudden explosion.

I let myself sigh out in relief, as I dumped down on the nearest pew, trying to stop the bleeding from my left arm with my hand. Remembering I needed to find the bell before it stopped ringing, I jumped up from the pew, forgetting everything about rest and my bleeding arm as I tried to carefully listen after the familiar _dong_.

…

To my relief I heard it after having stood a couple of seconds in total silence. However, it was starting to slow down now, meaning it was the end of the song. I ran back and forth in confusion, trying to find a way to the tower where the bell was hanging, as I saw a small brown door, almost hidden behind the altar. I ran toward it as fast as I possibly could, putting both of my fans back in my belt and taking a last glance back at Kie and the rest of the Finders, hoping they wouldn't get attacked by an Akuma, before I with a firm grip on the door handle tore up the door, and ran through it into a small squared hallway.

I felt my blue eyes look around bewildered, first at the door leading to another room, and then at the black spiral staircase leading up to one of the towers, and I listened carefully, trying to detect whether the sound was coming from up there or not.

Deciding the sound had to be coming from the floor above, I sprinted toward the spiral staircase, while thinking the entire scenario through one more time. _Why does the bell keep on ringing every night? Why has it been trapping people in the church, keeping them here even to the brink of death?_ I jumped up on the first step at the staircase, holding on to the handle as I ran upstairs two steps at a time. _There has to be a reason for the Innocence to be doing all of this – a connection somehow._ The sound of the bell was slowly starting to fade and suddenly it hit me, the reason why it felt like I had heard the melody before.

_It's a lullaby._

And not just any lullaby. It was one of the various lullabies I used to sing for my younger sister when she couldn't fall asleep at night. The melody the bell had been playing, for years now, was the exact same lullaby that had also been one of my sister's favorites for years. I knew it in and out like my own pockets. Remembering how I used to sit by Lily's bed, singing the song over and over again to make her fall asleep, suddenly lead me on to remembering something else.

_The first mission Allen went on._

He had to go receive Innocence in Martel from a living doll that had been living along with a man for years all by themselves in the abandoned city. The only thing the doll wanted was to stay with the deceasing old man, singing the same lullaby to him until he passed on. The doll had been made for singing, to bring happiness to its people, but as the villagers left the city the doll slowly started to go insane, not being able to fulfill what it was made for. After years had passed by, the man found the doll, saving it by staying along with it for years and listening to the lullaby being sung every day.

_This mission isn't really that different._

Finally realizing the motives of the Innocence, I jumped up the last three remaining stairs, just in time to see a small green light coming from the huge church bell, before it stopped ringing, having reached the end of the lullaby.

I panted heavily (I needed to work on my stamina), while looking over at the old bronze bell. When Daniela died, the villagers stopped coming to visit the church. The bell though, being made for people to listen to it and to spread light into the obscure town, kept on ringing every night, despite no one listening to it any longer. As time passed by, the Innocence must have begun to get frustrated, and as some of the villagers entered the church to find the source for the odd ringing every night, the Innocence probably saw this as an opportunity to finally get to play for people again, thus somehow trapping the villagers in the church. I bet it kept on doing this until people completely stopped coming even near the church. However, human beings can't survive for long without food and water, meaning the thirteen skeletons I found downstairs were probably the remaining corpses of the villagers who entered the church.

And Innocence (usually) doesn't affect other Innocence-users, which explained why my mind didn't suddenly shut down and go into a trance when I entered the church – but Kie was a Finder, which was why he had been affected.

"All you wanted," I said, now talking directly to the bell as I walked closer to it, "was for people to come and listen to your song, just like they used to do with Daniela." Slowly I let my fingers slide across the cold metal surface, keeping my gaze at the enormous bell.

"I can help you to properly sing the lullaby one last time. But then you also have to stop haunting this town." I let myself dump down on the cold stone floor, still resting my fingers on the bell.

"Trust me, it's just not worth it."

Without expecting any kind of answer, I made sure to clear my throat, before opening my mouth.

_Lay down your head and I'll sing you a lullaby_

_Back to the years of loo-li lai-lay_

_And I'll sing you to sleep and I'll sing you tomorrow_

_Bless you with love for the road that you go_

Slowly, the bell started to ring along on the lullaby, cribbing back and forth, as it followed the melody of the song.

_May you sail far to the far fields of fortune_

_With diamonds and pearls at your head and your feet_

_And may you need never to banish misfortune_

_May you find kindness in all that you meet_

Now we were both completely in sync with each other. A small green light shining out from the bell, started to cast dancing shadows into the tower, making it seem like we weren't actually here by ourselves.

_May there always be angels to watch over you_

_To guide you each step of the way_

_To guard you and keep you safe from all harm_

_Loo-li, loo-li, lai-lay_

_May you bring love and may you bring happiness_

_Be loved in return to the end of your days_

_Now fall off to sleep, I'm not meaning to keep you_

_I'll just sit for a while and sing loo-li, lai-lay_

Brown rust was little by little starting to cover up the church bell, however it didn't stop ringing. The green shadows were slowly starting to fade, as the light from the bell became weaker.

_May there always be angels to watch over you_

_To guide you each step of the way_

_To guard you and keep you safe from all harm_

_Loo-li, loo-li, lai-lay, loo-li, loo-li, lai-lay..._

As I finished the lullaby, the rust had taken over the entire surface of the bell, which bit by bit started to crumble, the rusty metal falling to the ground and becoming dust. I sat completely still for a few minutes, just looking at the old bell being turned into dust. I let my gaze rest on the big pile of gray dust, right in the middle of it, an encircled silver wrench at the size of my palm was lying, slightly glowing green.

I reached out for the green-lightening object, as a small wind whipped through the tower, scattering the pile of dust into thousands of different directions. As I picked up the wrench I felt a presence from the object, a somehow familiar feeling, the same I got when I held my Anti-Akuma weapon. It was a warm and tickling feeling, like when you reached out to feel your own heartbeat.

"So this is Innocence." I mumbled to myself, looking fascinated down at the stunningly beautiful object. No wonder people say it was a gift given by God. I grinned to myself, not letting my eyes tear away from the Innocence for even a second.

"I guess this means I completed my first mission."

_Sweetness._

* * *

**A/N: I swear you guys are the best. I received so many sweet reviews so I felt like writing and publishing an extra chapter this week (even though I should probably be getting ready for exams -_- because screw homework that's why! Procrastinating is my life...).**

**Anyone know the song used in this chapter by the way? If not, then it's called 'Sleepsong by secret garden' (in case anyone feel like checking it out). I think I heard it once and then ideas on the mission started popping up in my head. And yes, I know it was published like ten years ago and not in the 19th century, but that's intentional. Wanna know why? *smirks* Too bad, you're gonna have to wait~**


	9. Finishing Up

Remembering Kie and the other Finders had been under the Innocence's spell this whole time, I quickly got up and ran toward the staircase with a firm grip on the Innocence. I jumped down the spiraled staircase, almost tripping a few times, before I made it down safe and sound and I ran right for the door, bursting it open.

"Kie!" I cried out, just as I ran through the door, stopping behind the churches' altar, all five Finders looking up at me in surprise. _Uh…awkward…_

"M-miss Bella! What happened?!" Kie asked me, looking utterly bewildered. I sighed out in relief, having been worried sick about whether Kie and the other Finders would ever return to normal. Suddenly feeling five kilos lighter, I ran down the altar.

"I'll tell you everything later, ok?" I hurriedly said as I ran past him down the aisle, heading for the door to get outside. As I opened up the door, I heard Kie commenting on the red mark I gave when I slapped one of the Finders, and a sting of guilt struck my chest as I ran out through the door.

"Lavi!" I called out, and saw to my relief the redhead standing a little further down the church. He turned around, looking just as relieved as I felt upon seeing me.

"Bella! Are you alright?!" He yelled back, running toward me. I nodded eagerly with a large grin on my face, raising my right arm for him to see the Innocence.

"I got the Innocence!" I laughed out, feeling ridiculously proud of myself. Lavi laughed back at me, about to say something as his entire face suddenly turned into a horrified expression, looking at something behind me. I turned my head in the last second, as a huge bee-shaped Akuma flew right at me, hitting me so hard I with violent force was flung through the air, before falling in the water at the old harbor. _I thought they had destroyed the remaining Akuma!_

The water surrounding me was cold, dark, murky and unwelcoming. It felt like icy-cold needles were coming from all sides, prickling and piercing my skin. Disoriented, my eyes darted from side to side, trying to figure out what was up and down. Panicking from the sudden lack of oxygen, I tried to breathe, cold salty water filling my mouth and burning my lungs. _Calm down._ I demanded myself. This wasn't the first time I had been close to drowning, it had happened not one, two or three times before, but _four _times before. I was quite reckless when it came to swimming in the ocean, and always overestimated my own swimming abilities and underestimated the power of underwater currents and large waves.

"_First rule when ever close to drowning, you must never start panicking sweetheart." _My mom's voice echoed in my head. I was five, and it was right after she had pulled me out of a strong current and onto the shore of the beach safely. _"Second, if you are ever caught in a current, you must never struggle and try to get free. Simply let it take you, and it will eventually let go. Then you can swim into the shore."_

Despite the current circumstances I ended up smiling softly at the memory. _"Keep in mind that a person's body is lighter than the water."_

With that thought in mind I immediately stopped struggling, and simply let my body float upwards sideways, letting me know which way 'up' was. I then swam up to the water's surface, still holding a tight grip around the Innocence and just before I reached the surface I saw the Akuma being destroyed by Lavi's hammer.

I spat out water and breathed for air as I finally made it across the surface, my body shivering from the icy water.

"Bella!" Lavi ran out on one of the wharfs closest to where I was, a mix of worry, surprise and shock on his face. "Are you okay?"

"Lavi, I fell in the water!" I whined, first realizing now that I was actually just pushed in the water. I looked up at Lavi, feeling all of the previous happiness turning into annoyance and disappointment. Lavi looked a little puzzled back at me, before bursting out in laughter.

"Wha- it's not funny!" I snapped at the redhead, but he just continued to laugh.

"I'm sorry!" He said, almost chocking on his own laughter, and honestly, I hoped he would. He stretched his hand out for me to take. "Here."

Swimming over to him, I reached out for his hand, for a few seconds considering pulling him into the water with me, but came to the conclusion that it would be too stupid, seeing as we were still on a mission. Without too much difficulty Lavi pulled me out of the water, and I stumbled upon the wharf, handing over the Innocence to him before I took a look at myself in disappointment, making Lavi crack up laughing once again.

"Seriously, it's _not_ funny." I snapped at him, starting to get a little annoyed with this.

"I know, I know, sorry." He nodded, desperately trying to get his own laughter under control. I shivered as a cold breeze whipped through the air, making my wet hair sway and goose pimples appear on my skin. Finally having stopped laughing Lavi looked at me, now with a more apologizing expression on his face.

"You should take off your clothes if you don't want to get sick."

"What, you want me to strip now?" I snapped at him, not having the profit to hear any more of his silly jokes.

"No, no, just the worst of it." He said, pointing at my jacket. "Like your jacket and gloves."

Doing as the Bookman told me, I began with shivering hands to remove my gloves and jacket. I looked confused up at Lavi as he took off his own jacket and then handed it over to me.

"Won't you be cold?" I asked puzzled, still accepting the warm jacket nonetheless, putting it on with gratitude.

"You're the one here who is soaked." He laughed at me, taking off his orange scarf and gently rolling it around my neck a few times, my mouth almost disappearing under the long scarf. My eyes darted to the ground, and I tried to bury my head in the warm scarf so that he wouldn't see me blushing, while trying to calm down my racing heart, beating at the same pace of that of a humming bird's wings.

"Thank you."

"Any time." Lavi smiled at me, before bursting out in laughter again. I just sighed, a little irritated with him. _You just ruined the moment, idiot…_

"Miss Bella! Mr. Lavi!" I turned away from the laughing redhead, glancing over at the church, as Kie came running out of it, followed by four puzzled-looking Finders. _Here comes "Sherlock" and his minions._

"What exactly just happened?" He asked both us, mainly looking at me though. Finally Lavi pulled himself together and stopped laughing, looking at me a little confused.

"Yeah, what happened? How did you get the Innocence, Bella?" He asked, still smiling though. I was about to open my mouth to tell them everything, as Kie interrupted me.

"M-miss Bella, your arm!" He exclaimed looking at the left sleeve of Lavi's jacket that had now been stained a crimson red color.

"Bella, you're bleeding!" Lavi exclaimed, looking just as shocked as Kie. Having completely forgotten about the wound I got from the clownish Akuma, I pulled out my left arm of the sleeve, a little confused to have a look at the ulcer. _Oh yeah…_

"One of the Akuma got me in the church." I mumbled, suddenly feeling the stinging from the flesh wound, now that my adrenalin had finally slowed down.

"You need to go to the hospital." Kie went on, the four Finders behind him nodding in agreement, remaining completely silent though (a sight I would have laughed at if not for the current situation).

"No that's fine." I reassured them, the wound telling me otherwise though. "Besides it could take hours and I really want to go back to the Order." I went on, shivering a little and then added. "If we stay here for too long, I might get sick."

Lavi and Kie exchanged a look, before Kie walked over to the left side of me, pulling up a white roll of bandage from his pocket. Knowing I won this argument, I stretched out my wounded arm for him to examine it.

"It's not looking _that_ bad." He said, still examining it. _I don't see you bleeding anywhere… _Gently he started to roll the bandage around my arm, pulling in it to stop the bleeding, making it sting a little more for a few seconds. "It must still hurt though." He glanced up at me, finishing the first aid bandaging. I just shrugged.

"It's not that bad." I answered him, which wasn't even a lie. Honestly, it was the smaller wounds I hated getting, like paper cuts and especially the sting of needles.

Kie let go of my arm, and I pulled the warm sleeve back on. I then proceeded to jump from side to side, trying to get the warmth back in my limbs. Again, I was about to tell Lavi and Kie what happened in the church, as I suddenly saw Kanda appearing from behind the corner of the church, looking perfectly fine.

"K-Kanda, are you alright!" I yelled, loud enough for him to hear me. He just growled something I couldn't exactly hear as he walked over to the rest of us, looking with a little confused expression at the sudden four extra Finders (once again, something I would have laughed at if not for the current situation), which then turned into annoyance, probably because he missed out on a lot having to fight the Level 3.

"Mind filling me in on everything." He more like demanded than asked, mainly looking over at Lavi. The redhead just shrugged before glancing at me.

"Actually we're all waiting for Bella to explain, seeing as she's the one who got the Innocence." Lavi patted the pocket of his pants, where he put the Innocence. Kanda's eyes went from Lavi to me, scrolling up and down my soaked form, his eyes showing confusion and annoyance once again.

"What the _hell_ happened to you?" He growled, looking from Lavi's jacket to the wet clothes I was holding in my right hand. Again, Lavi burst out in laughter and I sighed in irritation over him. It was a little funny the first time, but now it was just getting old.

"I was pushed, PUSHED!" I yelled, mainly at Lavi though, but he just keept on laughing, "in the water." I finished. Kanda looked from me to Lavi and then back at me with a blank face expression.

"Did the stupid rabbit push you in?" He snarled looking annoyed over at Lavi, who was about to open up his mouth, probably to defend himself from Kanda's accusation, but I interrupted him.

"Actually I was pushed in the water by an Akuma." I confessed, making sure to look the other way.

"Well, what kind of _klutz_ gets pushed in the water by an Akuma." He growled annoyed at me, before turning around on his heels, walking away in the direction of the town. _Wha - it caught me off guard! _I snarled out swears and cusses in my own language after the blue-haired exorcist, making sure to do it in a low voice, not quite having the courage to yell at him so that he could hear it, let alone do it in a language he understood.

Lavi grinned at me, giving my shoulder a reassuring squeeze. Releasing a tired sigh I started to follow Kie and the rest of the Finders along with Lavi through the sleeping town, heading right for the train station so that we could get home. On the way I began to tell them everything about how the Innocence had been trapping people in the church and how I ended up getting hurt by the Akuma, the only thing I excluded is how I figured out the motives of the bell (by remembering Allen's first mission) and then of course that I sang the lullaby for the Innocence to regain inner piece (as that would have been extremely awkward to explain).

As we all realized that the four Finders had been trapped inside the church for a few days now, Kie decided to call the headquarters just to inform them that the lost Finders were back safe and sound.

Lavi, Kanda and I were standing by ourselves, on one of the deserted dark streets, waiting for the five Finders to finish the call with headquarters. The full moon was shining upon us, illuminating up the sky and the dark streets with its silver light.

Feeling my legs ache from tiredness and overexertion I wobbled over to rest against the wall, placing my back against the cold stone material beside of a yawning Lavi. A little tired, I glanced over at Kanda standing in front of us, the samurai didn't look to be bothered by the lack of sleep at all, instead he just sighed irritated, having to wait for the Finders to finish their call.

Something had been bothering me ever since we left the church though. _How is _that_ lullaby here? _I mean it made no sense. Unless I was mistaking, the plot and story of D. Gray-man took place in the late 19th century. _Correction:_ I _knew _it took place in the late 19th century – I had seen it with my own eyes. _But how is the lullaby here, then?_ I knew for a fact that it wasn't that old of a song. It must have been released in the 21st century. I didn't remember the exact date, but I do remember hearing it in the radio as a kid when it was fairly new. _But then how…?_

…

…_Oh well. I'm too tired to try and figure it out right now…_

"You two didn't get hurt at all?" I mumbled tired, feeling a little guilty since I hadn't thought of it at all upon till now. I glanced from Lavi to Kanda, who was looking quite uninterested the other way, downright ignoring my question.

"Nope." Lavi grineds tired, yawning again.

"What about you Kanda?" I went on, looking over at the exorcist who obviously didn't show any sort of interest in the conversation whatsoever. At first he just tried to pretend like he didn't hear me, but I just kept on staring at him, watching the vein on his forehead grow, indicating that he was getting more and more annoyed with it, and then eventually gave in to my staring.

"Of course not." He snarled irritated, still looking the other way though. Lavi chuckled a bit.

"Even if Yu had gotten an injury, it would have probably been healed by now." He said, looking over at Rapunzel.

"_Don't_ call me that." The samurai snapped, looking with piercing eyes back at Lavi.

_That's right. _Because of certain circumstances, Kanda had an incredible healing ability, even being able to bring him back from the brink of death. I glanced back at Kanda with a more interested look, hoping for him to explain it all to me, but the blue-haired exorcist just looked the other way, with an even more annoyed expression on his face now.

Just to annoy him, I was about to ask him more about his healing ability, even though I knew the reason, but I stopped myself from doing so as I for a short second caught a quick glimpse of what looked like…grief? I wasn't sure, it was very quick, I could have imagined it...

Suddenly remembering the _entire_ reason, and the terrible past Kanda had had, I let my eyes fall to the ground, recalling how I cried and was depressed for hours after reading about Kanda's history. Truth to be told, I had great respect for him staying at the Order, given all of the shit he had been through because of it.

We stood a couple of minutes in silence, before Kie and the other Finders came back, Kie went with us as the train arrived while the other Finders apparently had another thing to check, waiting at the station for another train as we drove away.

* * *

"How is your arm doing?" Lavi asked me, as we finally got to sit down on the soft leather-couches in the compartment, Kanda sitting across from Lavi and me (once again), looking out the window…once again. I let myself lean against the cold surface of the glass, placing the orange scarf over my chin and let my eyes fall shut before answering Lavi's question.

"Fine, I guess. Honestly I'm so tired right now, which makes it soothe down a little."

"Ah~ sleep truly is the best drug for pain." Lavi joked, less energetic than usual. I let out a tired halfhearted laugh at his stupid joke.

Too tired to keep up a descent conversation, I just closed off from all of my surroundings, while waiting for the long trip back to headquarters to end, falling in and out of a half-sleep state, thinking that we had made it to Brescia's train station every single time the train stopped. Eventually I just stopped trying to stay awake, and during seconds I dozed completely off. I only got to sleep for, what seemed like, a few seconds though, before I felt someone gently touching my right arm, making me flinch in surprise.

"Bella, we're getting off." I heard Lavi's voice softly and I slightly nodded, opening up my eyes as the redhead helped me up from the way too comfortable seats and out of the train.

The walk from the station through Brescia's empty streets felt like an eternity, and I swear, I was close to fainting more than once. I had never felt this tired before, it constantly felt like I was either sleepwalking or as if my senses had completely dozed off; the only thing functioning on me were my legs. I felt like a fat kid after 45 push-ups and 2 rounds in the ring with a chicken. Finally though, we made it to the old town of Brescia where we first arrived with the Gate, only this time the Gate was nowhere to be seen. A little panicking, I slowly started to wake up.

"Where is the Gate?" I asked, my eyes darting from Lavi to Kanda to Kie.

"I just contacted headquarters. The Gate will open in two minutes." Kie told me, putting back the black bat-formed golem in his pocket. _Oh, he must have done that while I wasn't paying attention._

Seeing Lavi dump down on one of the broken mosaic posts, I was really close to copying him and do the same, but came to the conclusion that I probably wouldn't be able to get back up again, so I ended up standing while waiting for the Gate to open. Like Kie said, the white door rolled up from the ground a few minutes later, making me think of it as an elevator.

_I can't wait to be reunited with my best friend. His name is_ 'bed'.

* * *

**A/N: Yep, Bella nearly drowned. Also a bit of a (one-sided) cute moment with Bella and Lavi. What did you think? If you guys have any questions, suggestions etc. feel free to ask and whatnot :) I really love hearing from you guys.**


	10. Within Body and Mind (not!)

"Welcome back!"

"Johnny!" I exclaimed, feeling the joy and happiness as I saw him, already feeling safe around the delighted young scientist. I ran up to him, tripping from side to side in my still soaked clothes, a huge grin on my face. "Look, Johnny! I survived!"

The young scientist simply laughed at me, giving me a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

"Now, now Johnny, there are more sincere ways to greet a girl, you know." A little more rough voice said, and I tilted a little to the side, looking past Johnny to see a tall older scientist, maybe in his late forties or early fifties? He had shoulder-length brown dreadlocks with an orange clot cap on top of his head. His upper lip and chin were covered in uneven stubble, and finally he was wearing a small pair of circular-formed glasses. To a certain extent he kind of reminded me of an old hippie.

"N-no you're wrong! Bella is my friend!" Johnny exclaimed, looking back at the older scientist, walking this way. He just laughed at Johnny and then turned to me, thrusting out his hand for me to shake.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Bella. I'm Jiji Lujun." The old man shot me a friendly smile, and I felt a little bad for not being able to remember him from the manga.

"Hey there Jiji, Johnny!" A smiling Lavi yelled, tripping over to us, filled with a little more energy all of a sudden and with a clenched fist, he punched Jiji and Johnny on the arm, Jiji lightly punched him back while Johnny stumbled to the side from the sudden hit. Jiji turned his head, looking over at Kanda, still with a big smile on his face.

"Long time no see, Kanda! How's the sword you got from Zu the old sword smith?"

"That old man is still alive?" Kanda growled before turning around to walk out of the room.

"If you don't have any complaint I'll tell him it's fine." Jiji yelled after Kanda.

"Do what you want." Kanda finally said, as he disappeared out the room. _Did Kanda just open his heart a little?_

"Oh yeah, Bella, Jiji was here at headquarters until about two years ago." Johnny explained, turning toward me, before Lavi laughing took over the short explanation.

"But then he had a fight with the higher-ups and got sent to the Asia Branch, but was then sent back here again a few months ago."

"I knew Kanda when he was just a little wee-thing." Jiji laughed out, placing his hand in front of his stomach, showing the height of Kanda as a kid. I laughed at the old man's statement, before Johnny interrupted us.

"Bella, what happened to your arm!?" He exclaimed looking in horror at my bleeding left arm, before noticing the wet clothes in my hands and the ones I was wearing. "And you're soaked!"

"Bella ran off on her own and then got hurt by an Akuma _and_ fell in the water." Lavi laughed, before letting me explain anything.

"But I _also _found the Innocence." I mumbled a little annoyed, before I noticed Johnny's worried look. "I'm fine." I reassured him, but he didn't really seem to ease up.

"You should go to the nurses room at once, Bella." Jiji said, gently taking the wet clothes out of my hands.

"If you take care of Bella, I'll go to Komui's office and drop off the Innocence and a report of the mission." Lavi said, patting the pocket where he placed the Innocence, before turning around to walk out the room. _But I just wanna go to bed! If anything kills me, it's gonna be the horrific lack of sleep._

"Ah, Lavi!" I exclaimed, taking off the orange scarf and the warm jacket as Lavi turned around, looking at me with a questioning eye.

"Thank you." I murmured, feeling the warmth in my cheeks as I handed over the clothes to Lavi. "For lending me your jacket and scarf."

"Won't you be cold if you take it off now, since you're still soaked? You can just give it back tomorrow, you know." He said, still looking a little puzzled at me, not accepting the clothes in my hand.

"We're back at headquarters now, and I'm going to the nurses room anyway, so it's fine." I smiled at him, before I suddenly felt something warm and smooth being laid across my shoulders. I looked up at Jiji behind me, to find that he had gently placed his lab coat across my shoulders, both of his warm hands firmly placed on my shoulders.

"Don't worry Lavi, we'll take care of Bella from here on." The old man reassured Lavi, Johnny nodding in agreement, as Lavi accepted the clothes I borrowed from him and then walked out the room, smiling and waving at us, before disappearing.

"Well, let's get you to the hospital, Bella." Jiji smiled, gently leading me out of the room, followed by Johnny tripping behind us.

They lead me through the different hallways until we reached two big divided rooms, both of them filled up with hospital beds and glass-shelves stuffed with different kinds of medical-tools and medicine. Johnny walked into the smallest one of the rooms, followed by me being leaded by Jiji into the white-walled room. Jiji motioned for me to sit down on one of the white-sheeted beds and Johnny sat down beside me, as a woman in a darkly colored long dress with a high, stiff collar, a white pinafore apron and a nurse's cap showed herself. Her pale hair was pulled back into a tight, braided bun, with some sharp facial features and small squinty gray eyes.

I shuddered a little at the sight of the harsh-looking nurse, but tried to ignore it by looking out one of the elongated windows, watching the silver-shining moon on the black sky.

"Head Nurse, this is Bella Morrison. She got into a bit of trouble during her mission." Jiji explained, pulling the white lab coat off my shoulders and showing the wound on my left arm. The Head Nurse pushed Johnny aside to get a better look of my arm, carefully taking off the scarlet stained bandage.

"You exorcists have to be more careful." She sighed, examining the flesh wound, before getting up and walking over to one of the glass-shelves, looking for something.

"Why are you soaked?" She asked, finding some bandage in the shelf, and some sort of liquid. She came back with the gear, wetting some of the bandage as she sat down beside me again.

"I'm going to make sure the wound is clean by disinfecting it, before putting a clean bandage on." She explained and I nodded, telling her it was fine, before she added. "It's going to sting." _Go for it._

I turned my head away from the scene, looking out the windows again, letting my eyes rest on one of the gray skies, as the Head Nurse held a firm grip around my arm, before starting to clean the wound. I made a frowning grimace, gritting my teeth together in pain, as the burning liquid started dapping on my wound and I had to remind myself that I would rather have my wounds disinfected a hundreds times over, than get an injection. Bit by bit, I felt the stinging in my left arm disappear and as I looked back at the wound, I saw to my surprise a completely fresh bandage being laid around it.

"Thank you." I said, smiling at the Head Nurse who just smiled back at me, before she softly put her hand on my forehead, feeling the temperature.

"You don't have a fever, luckily." She concluded, letting her hand fall down her side as she got up from the bed, walking over with the leftover bandages and disinfection. "You should go to bed at once, though. You have dark circles under your eyes. Also," She turned around, looking at Jiji and Johnny with piercing eyes, "you two workaholics should get some sleep, too. If you are tired it only adds to my work."

I could see how the color of both scientists completely left their face, sitting completely still, trying to avoid eye contact with the nurse's sharp glare.

"Yes, Ma'am." They both mumbled, before running out of the hospital, Johnny pulled me in the wrist, while Jiji pushed me in the bag, making me stumble along with them.

"Remember to come and get your bandage replaced tomorrow, Miss Bella!" The nurse yelled after us, and I shivered a little at the thought of having to come here by myself.

At last making it to my room, I made a long tired groan, not even having the energy to turn on the light. I walked over to the brown dresser, nearly tripping over my own bag on the way, and then glanced into the mirror hanging above it. Again, I sighed as I saw myself in the reflection, using the silver light from the moon to get an overview. My hair had never been so messy before, the tips of it standing out in every direction because of the wetting, and I didn't know if it was because of the moonlight, but my face looked horrifyingly pale, making the dark circles under my eyes stand out even more. I think the correct term to describe my look at the moment was "Zombie". _What time is it anyway?_ With my remaining strength I took off the wet clothes, throwing it over in the corner of the room, and then managed to put on my pajamas before I let myself fall down in the oh-so-comfortable bed, snuggling under the soft duvet.

* * *

I had no idea what time it was, at least late enough for the sun to have risen to the top of the sky, and I was inertly snarling curses at myself for forgetting to pull the curtains for the window to block off the sun's piercing beams.

Growling, I pulled the white duvet over my head, turning away from the bright room as I closed my eyes trying to fall asleep again, but all of a sudden felt completely awake. Groaning in irritation, I sat up in the bed, glancing with piercing eyes toward the window, squinting my eyes together because of the yellow-glowing beams. _I hate mornings so very much…_

* * *

"Welcome back, Bella." Jerry greeted me with his usual smile, as I stopped in front of his worktop. "I heard from Lavi your mission went well."

"Thanks, and yeah it did." I smiled back, feeling rather lazy today. "Will you make me some egg and bread?"

Full of energy as usual, Jerry nodded, happily turning around to make what I just ordered. I turned around, looking out in the huge dining hall, which was not as filled up as usual, but there were still a lot of people. A little desperate I tried to look for anyone I knew, but the only people I could see were scientists I didn't know or Finders that I didn't know either.

"I take it Lenalee isn't back from her mission? And Lavi and Allen is training?" I asked Jerry as he turned around with a finished tray of breakfast.

"Yes, Lenalee is still on her mission in Budapest," Jerry pushed the tray toward me, "as for those two, Allen was sent on a mission yesterday and Lavi had some things to check out in Russia with Bookman."

Oh. Damn. Those three were sort of the only people (with an exception for Johnny) that I had been spending time with ever since getting here. If they weren't here, then what would I do? Maybe this was like a wake-up call, telling me to go talk with some other people here… Or I could just go into my anti-social mode and flee to my room.

Suddenly though, I saw the familiar dark-blue long hair, the samurai sitting by himself by one of the benches. _Well, it's not like he hates me… I hope._ Briskly I walked over to the table, dumping down on the bench beside Kanda.

"Good morning." I smiled to him, hoping he wouldn't yell at me to leave again. With narrowed eyes, Kanda eyed me.

"It's 2:15 pm." He said shortly.

"Good afternoon, then." I corrected myself, taking a bite of the newly baked bread. He just sighed at me, turning his head back to the steaming soba. I glanced down at the Japanese noodles, remembering that Kanda never ate anything _but _soba. Seriously he ate it morning, noon and evening, 24/7.

"Does soba really taste _that_ good?" I asked, looking curiously up at him. With a rather annoyed face, almost raging, Kanda turned his head to me, his eyes showing nothing but anger and disbelief.

"You've _never_ tasted soba?"

"N-no." I squeaked, starting to feel a little nervous from his stare.

The dark eyes narrowed together even more, going from me to the plate of egg and bread in front of me, before Kanda got up and snatched the tray in front of me.

"H-hey!" I yelled after him, as he walked up to Jerry, placing my food at his desk while saying something to Jerry. A few minutes passed by before Kanda came back to the bench, placing a bowl filled with steaming hot soba in front of me as he sat down again beside of me.

"Eat." He demanded, picking up his chopsticks and going back to eating his own meal. I looked at him in total disbelief for a few seconds. _Did he just take my food, and replace it?_ Finding the entire situation a bit hilarious, I turned toward the noodles with a smile on my lips, picking up the chopsticks, only to start cursing myself for always having avoided eating with these things. It didn't look as professional as when Kanda did it, but I managed to somehow eat with the wooden sticks (after having dropped them multiple times).

"Well?" Kanda suddenly growled, still eating his noodles.

"What?" I asked a little puzzled.

"What do you think of the soba?" He snarled annoyed at me, as if that's a given.

"It's fine."

"Just 'fine'?" Kanda narrowed his eyes together, glaring at me.

"It tastes pretty good, but I have tasted better things." I shrugged my shoulders a little, hoping he wouldn't induce forth his sword and cut me in two. Kanda just looked at me in total disbelief, before sighing annoyed and turning back to his empty bowl, placing his chopsticks on top of the green bowl.

"You're weird, girl."

I smiled a little to him, finishing up my noodles as Kanda suddenly got up, taking with the empty bowl.

"Where are you going?" I exclaimed, not wanting to be left all by myself.

"To meditate." He answered simply.

"Can I… uh… come?" Once again he narrowed the dark eyes together, looking at me with irritation. "I've always wanted to learn how to meditate." I went on, trying to make puppy eyes as good as possible (out of all people, I _don't_ think it would work on Kanda though). Honestly I felt really lethargic and lazy at the moment, so I didn't feel like going training or having to participate in any long conversations.

"_Fine_. But if you don't behave properly, I swear, I will throw you out again." Kanda finally said, walking over with the bowl at Jerry's desk.

"Really? Thank you!" I exclaimed probably a bit too happy, making Kanda give me that annoyed look I used to give my younger sister whenever she would want to tag along with me. Behaving a little more nicely I walked up with the finished bowl, putting it at Jerry's worktop, and then ran after Kanda. The dark-haired exorcist (without waiting by the way) headed for a large, light and completely empty room that almost seemed to be made for meditating.

Kanda marched right into the middle of the room and then dumped down on the floor, crossing his long legs. Sitting in a legged position he closed his dark eyes.

"Find a comfortable position to sit in." Kanda told me and I walked over to him, dumping down beside him, deciding to sit in the same legged position, placing my hands in my lab.

"Close your eyes and take a deep breath." He went on still having closed his eyes, and I did as instructed, trying to take deep breathes as I closed my eyes.

…

"Am I doing it correct?" I asked a little uncertain, as my breathing wasn't following Kanda's and I opened my eyes to look over at him questioningly.

"You have to feel it all the way down in your stomach." He answered me, still having closed eyes. Doing as instructed, I closed my eyes again, trying to really take deep, long breathes, to feel it in my stomach, and this time it actually went better. Enjoying the silence, I made sure to sharpen my ears as Kanda said something again.

"Now, empty your head from thoughts."

This on the other hand I found a little hard. Every time I managed to clear my head, something new suddenly popped up, making me think a little bit before actually realizing it.

"It's hard." I mumbled, opening my eyes half up to look over at Kanda, the blue-haired exorcist just ignored my comment, obviously not finding it difficult at all. Sighing, I closed my eyes again, trying to not think about anything, but for some reason the lullaby I sang along with the bell at the mission this night, kept popping up in my head, and before I even knew of it, I was sitting and humming the lullaby aloud.

I jumped in surprise as Kanda's hand suddenly flew up in front of my mouth, a little too hard, making my entire lower face sting, because of the sudden slap. _Ow. _I looked surprised over at Kanda, seeing a vein of anger pop out on his forehead.

"When meditating you need to be _quiet_." He growled annoyed, still holding his long hand across my mouth and with closed eyes. Not being able to say anything I nodded instead, making Kanda retract his hand, placing it in his lab again. I closed my eyes once more, taking a deep breath, trying to time my breathing with Kanda's, which actually helped me take my mind off of the lullaby.

"If you are having trouble keeping your mind clear, then try to listen to the surroundings." Kanda said a little after. Taking the samurai's tip I started to first match my breathing with his and then after, listened to the different sounds that I usually didn't notice. Hearing the birds singing and the buzzing of different insects, I finally started to relax, keeping my mind on my surroundings; first listening, then feeling – the beating of my own heart, the hard floor, and the turnings in the air. _Meditating actually isn't that bad._

* * *

"So, do you like, do something with your hair to make it so… shiny?"

I placed my chin in my hand, resting the tip of my elbow on my folded legs, and then began tapping a restless index finger on my thigh. _Aw man. Meditating sucks!_ I swear I had never had to do something so boring in my entire life! Nothing was going on. We were just sitting in the middle of a room, eyes closed and legs folded, and then listening to the oh-so-great sounds of Mother Nature like some wise monk. And I was not very wise; let alone anything close to being a monk. I swear I would much rather go back to that boring school of mine than sit here… actually, no, I hadn't sunk that low just yet. But it was _very_ close to getting there. Honestly, I had no idea of how many hours Kanda and I had been sitting like this, _a lot_ that's for sure, and it seemed like every single minute was _slowly_ passing by at the same speed of a goddamn snail. And snails are _really_ slow. Just wanna point that out.

I thought meditating would be just a _tad_ cooler, than sitting around and doing nothing. Like, where were all of the cool tricks that would make me some awesome, unbeatable ninja-like exorcist. Wasn't Kanda going to teach me how to catch a fly with a pair of chopsticks? Or maybe teach me how to climb trees without using my hands? No? Isn't that what meditation was about? Well what did I know I never tried meditating before. Well I _tried_ once, but about five minutes passed by before I decided it was boring and left to go get something to eat.

Just like the multiple other times I had tried to do some small talk with him, Kanda simply ignored me, my question being met with painful silence in response.

"Because, you know, I'd really like to know if you have some smart secret to getting your hair that silky… like-ish."

Silence.

I sighed, looking away from the Japanese exorcist and scanning the room we were in (once again) for something entertaining to stare at. And like the forty other times I checked, nothing interesting met my gaze. I swear, this had got to be the most boring-looking rooms I had ever been in! There was nothing interesting to help keep my boredom at distance. Sure, the large open window at the other end of the room, showing the view of a beautiful garden-like forest outside was pretty and all, but I had been staring at that for the past hour. I needed something new to look at!

I eyed a butterfly warily as it managed to fly into the room, through the crack of the open window. Its brown and orange wings flapping up and down like a hummingbird, the insect started making its way toward Kanda and I. Though most people might find butterflies all pretty and peaceful, I actually didn't like butterflies very much. In fact, I didn't like any creature that had more than four legs. It was unnatural. And creepy. And weird. And I'd rather it just kept its distance from me.

I began inching my way to the side as the orange and brown-contrasted insect made its way past Kanda, the Japanese exorcist not sparing the creature one look and keeping his eyes shut in concentration, as it flew in my direction. _It can sense the fear._ My blue eyes followed the butterfly's every movement in suspicion, watching as it changed course and flew over my head… and then landed with a silent _plop_ on my hair.

…

"ARGH!" A very loud (and very manly) sound escaped my throat as the insect settled down in my hair, making Kanda's eyes shoot open in shock and then fall to me. I jumped up from the floor, shaking my head from one side to the other in a panicked attempt to try and pry the butterfly off without touching it.

"Oi! You want me to throw you out!?" Kanda snapped in rage, watching me with angry eyes as I continued to throw my head from side to side.

"Get it off! Get it off!" I continued to cry out, sounding more like a panicked gang-leading bodybuilder than a teenage girl. My second attempt to try and get the miniature demon off involved running from one side of the room to the other, while swinging my head wildly around, like some other metal-rock singer, my hair quickly tangling together and becoming one big mess of a bird nest, making it even harder to get the six-legged booger off.

Only seconds before I accidently ran into a wall in an attempt to pry it off, the butterfly decided to leave my tangled hair and fly off on its merry way.

"Ow!" I whined as my forehead connected with the hard wall, my entire head bumping back like another ball. I barely managed to stay on my feet as my body fell back from the sudden impact, my legs toppling and wobbling from side to side before regaining their balance.

"ARGH!" I yelled again in my oh-so-manly voice, bending forward and holding my head in-between my hands in an attempt to try and make the painful stings of pain currently running through my head disappear. "Little sly bugger!"

"Out."

"Huh?" I mumbled, raising my head from my hands and looking back at Kanda, the dark-haired exorcist giving me a warning glare.

"Get out." He demanded coldly, closing his eyes and turning back to his boring meditation. "My patience with you is up. Get out before I cut you in two, Klutz."

"K-Klutz!?" I repeated in disbelief, making an offended snort. "I'm not even clumsy."

Kanda's eyes shot open once again, the dark orbs turning to eye me in mock. "You fell in the water during a mission, you lost your chopsticks _eight_ times into the bowl and made soba splatter over the table during our meal,"

"It wasn't _eight_ times." I corrected him in defense.

"I counted."

"Oh."

"And you just ran into a wall." Kanda finished his list of why I was supposed to be called a klutz. I opened my mouth to retort back, but nothing came out but half-spluttering words, and so I ended up crossing my arms and turn my head in an offended pout.

"Well, fine then."

I bended in my knees, making a dramatic bow. "As thee wish, I shall leave," My pout turned into a smirk as I looked up from the floor and into Kanda's annoyed face. "_Rapunzel._"

…

"_What_ did you just call me?"

The atmosphere in the room made a sudden quick turn from simply irritated to a sudden heavy and _deadly_ tense air. _Oh geez._ I straightened myself up from my bowed position, trying to give the now menacing-looking Kanda a small smile.

"Not a big fan of that nickname, huh?" I laughed nervously; my eyes darting around the room to find an escape route as Kanda suddenly started reaching out for his Mugen. Taking a few steps back from the raging exorcist, I pointed nervously to the door behind me. "So… I should probably get going, right?"

And with that said, without expecting an answer, I turned on my heels and made a run for it, not caring if I was being a sissy and fleeing with my tail between my legs. No way was I going to die by the hands of an angry samurai.

* * *

**A/N: Bella doesn't know when to shut up. What did you think of her and Kanda's "bonding moment". Want more of those (as in Bella saying/doing something stupid and nearly getting killed), or...?**

**Anyway, thanks for reading!**


	11. Entering the Asian Branch

_The tall trees were closing off for any source of light coming from the silver moon illuminating the black sky. The eerie feeling from the forest was beginning to creep up my spine, raising all of the hairs on the back of my neck. I clenched my hands into tight fists, ignoring the stinging pain from my nails digging into the skin of my palms. A terrible sound of bones breaking and low growling hisses were making it to my ears from somewhere in the dark forest, coming closer and louder for every second that passed by._

_My legs instantly moved to a pace of running in the opposite direction and away from the terrible sounds, my mind simply set on fleeing. A feeling of terror squirmed itself around my heart, as I desperately tried to run through the forest, but realized that my legs were heavy and slow, making it seem like I was running in a slow motion. I whimpered in agony, trying to speed up my pace, but a bloody, bony hand stopped me from doing so; grapping my ankle and tugging me to the cold, branched ground. More of the bony hands grew up from the ground, like a flower spurting, grabbing my arms and legs, and pinning me to the ground._

_I screamed out in the darkness, trying to wrench myself free as the terrible crunches and growls got closer, overhearing my cries and screams for help._

I bolted upright in the bed, my eyes darting open and a small gasp escaping from my trembling lips. The sound of birds chirping outside told me the current time was nowhere near midnight._ A dream?_ My hand reached up to my forehead, putting a strand of disobeying golden-brown hair behind my ear. _I guess the horror from killing Akuma and seeing old corpses have finally gotten to me._ With a loud satisfying yawn, I got up from the warm bed and walked over to the window, pulling the curtains to the side and exposing the piercing beams from the sun and an almost cloud free sky. The blue color of the sky was still dark though, so my guess was that the time was only about seven in the morning, which was surprisingly early for me to get up, but my eyes and mind was as clear as the sky outside, so going back to sleep was out of the question. _This is why I hate mornings…_

* * *

A little hesitantly I stuck my head into the Science Department, glancing through the huge office as I looked at every single scientist I came across until I found the sandy-blond haired chief, sitting by a desk covered underneath stacks of paper. Briskly I walked across the room; smiling to the few scientists I had seen before, waving at Jiji occupied doing some sort of experiment, as I stopped in front of Reever's table.

"Here," I smiled, putting the can of lemon soda in front of the paper he was currently signing.

"Ah, hey Bella." He looked up surprised from the desk, before with a relieved smile glancing at the soda in front of him. "Thanks."

"No problem." I smiled back at him, dumping down on the chair beside his. "Jerry told me you forgot it. Anyway, what are you doing?"

"Just trying to find the papers I need to sign." He sighed tired, opening the can and taking a large sip of the sweet drink. I let my gaze follow the thousands upon thousands of papers, all messed together in smaller piles, wondering how he would ever finish signing the ones that needed to.

"Do you need some help?" I asked, knowing I wouldn't get any training done either today, besides I was kind of bored right now, and helping out the Science Department actually seemed kind of enjoyable. The sandy-blonde scientist looked a bit surprised at me, obviously wondering whether to let me help or not, his blue eyes glancing from me to the messy paperwork.

"Are you sure?" He asked skeptical, not quite having made up his mind yet.

"Yeah, I might not be a genius, but I can organize the papers." I went on.

That seemed to be all it took to make Reever agree. And so I ended up spending the next few hours helping Reever and the rest of the science department organizing the paperwork. For some reason I found it ridiculously relaxing to just sit and organize things, breaking into small conversations with either Reever, Johnny, Jiji or Tap's sister Cash.

I think helping these guys could end up becoming a habit. Unlike when I used to do homework for school, which was something I felt forced to do and absolutely boring, I actually found it quite nice helping them.

"Don't you find it a little odd?"

Surprised from the sudden question, I glanced up from the paperwork, looking puzzled at the tall scientist, wearing the exact same specialized lab coat as Reever with the identical badges at the collar. His pale blond hair was pulled back in a black hair band; accept two locks at his temples that handed down to his jaw. His entire energy and image seemed a bit… mocking, so to say. He placed the wire-framed glasses in place on his nose, continuing to look at Reever and I.

"One of the science section chiefs, having an exorcist help him do his paperwork." Rather arrogantly he crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Surely there is something wrong here."

"Huh?" I mumbled feeling a little puzzled. _Who in the hell is this guy?_

"Ah, no…you see, this is…" Reever mumbled, looking at me while trying to find the right words, the guy in front of us just stood with an expression of pure arrogance, waiting for an explanation. I tried to look for some sort of information about this guy in my head, but honestly I didn't remember him at all from the manga. But something about his attitude, no, his entire presence really annoyed me. Seriously, _who is he?_

"Well, do you disagree?" The guy asked, looking at Reever with piercing eyes.

"Ah, no…" Reever answered the guy in a hopeless tone.

"Actually, I do this because I enjoy it." I exclaimed, finally getting myself together in order to say something. The blonde's eyes went from Reever to me, staring me down like another dwarf.

"You 'enjoy' it?" He repeated skeptical.

"Yes." I answered him, trying not to snarl it out. _Again, who is this guy? His entire existence confuses me._ I leaned back in the chair, wondering whether he would go away soon as I suddenly noticed the scientist's eyes, slowly glancing me up and down, stopping his gaze at my chest. _Seriously? _I shifted in the chair, feeling quite uncomfortable from the sudden stare, noticing out of the corner of my eye, Reever glaring back at the guy.

"Well then, would you mind helping _me_ out with some paperwork?" He asked, a sudden grin on his face, motioning for me to walk over to his worktable.

"Um, alright…?" I murmured, getting up and walking over to look at the paperwork on the table he pointed at. _What a minute…is he giving me orders?!_

"Well, if she enjoys it, then I suppose I cannot complain…" I heard the guy comment, probably to Reever. Even though I was standing with my back facing the guy, it still felt like he was staring at me…

"Section Chief Peck, I would advise you not to look at Bella that way."

"Why? Does she have a lover?" _Must. Control. Fist._ "Or perhaps she has a brother too?"

_Holy crap that's right! I remember!_ This perverted Peck guy, along with another dude, joined the new headquarters after the Level 4 attack. He was a total pervert, also having stared at Lenalee and commenting on her coffee serving.

Finally remembering, I let go of the paperwork in my arms, letting it hit the table with a loud bump, and turned around, earning Reever and Peck's attention.

"Actually," I snapped, glaring at the creep. "I don't feel like helping you after all."

I marched over to Reever's table again, dumping down in the chair and making sure never to break eye contact with Peck the Perve.

"Also, I don't need a lover or a brother when handling creeps." I blew a piece of hair out of my eyes and crossed my arms. "My fist and I have a pretty close relationship."

* * *

"Have you guys tried out all of the doors yet?" I asked curiously, as we entered the white Mediterranean-styled city, making sure to walk close to Reever so that I wouldn't get lost.

So after I managed to scare off Peck the Perve, Reever had a bunch of paperwork he needed to drop off by the Asian Branch, and as I hadn't been there yet, he suggested I tag along.

"No, not even half-way. There are so many Gates and we have only had the Ark for a few months." Reever answered as we walked over to one of the white doors with a big sign hanging, on it was written, 'Asian Branch'. _How in the world did they all communicate and travel around the world, when they didn't have this convenient system?_ With a little difficulty, Reever somehow managed to open up the door without dropping the stack of papers he was holding.

"In you go." Reever smiled, holding the door open for me. "Welcome to the Asian Branch."

Entering the Asian Branch, I was a little surprised to find that there were no scientists in this room whatsoever, only a few guards in each corner, glancing at us for a few seconds before looking away again, and I was going to assume that they knew Reever so well now, that they didn't have to question him.

"Was the entire Asian Branch completely wiped out recently, or what?" I asked sarcastically, looking around in the almost empty room, and for a second actually considering the possibility of this place having been evacuated or something.

"No, no," Reever laughed. "There aren't as many staff members here as in the European Branch, being the main headquarters, the European Branch receives data from the other six branches analyzes it and dispenses orders according to what is found. All of the other branches have less employees and all exorcists are placed in the European Branch, so you just have to get used to the thought of living in the big building where the rules are the most strict."

_Well, the last part I was already aware of._ I nodded to Reever's explanation while trying to get a better grip around the stalk of papers in my arms, trying not to drop it all on the floor.

"At any rate, we'll go to the cafeteria and then see if anyone knows where Supervisor Bak is." Reever said heading for the long hallway, and not wanting to get lost I ran after him, making sure to stay close.

"Don't you think the Supervisor is in his office?" I asked puzzled, immediately regretting it as I remembered how this Bak-guy really was.

"No, that guy is just like Supervisor Komui. He tries to escape work whenever he gets the chance, also he visits the European Branch way too often." Reever sighed as we walked down the hallway. _Poor guy. I think Reever has to put up with much more than he gets credit for._

Not before long, we made it to an Asian-styled dinning hall, way larger than the one we had at the European Branch, but it might just look that way because of the four extra visible floors above this room. _Is this place located underground?_ I didn't know why I hadn't notice it before, but the floors and walls were a lot rougher looking than the ones at headquarters, these being made of cement. I was about to ask Reever whether this place was built underground, but someone else forestalled me.

"Section Leader Reever!" A rough older voice yelled out, managing to yell over the chitchatting in the cafeteria. I took a step to the left, looking past Reever, to see a tall older man, maybe in his mid-sixties, with white hair and a Donegal-styled bear, his eyes almost completely covered up by the thick bushed eyebrows, running toward us.

"Ah, Wong." Reever greeted the way too energetic old man, as he stopped in front of us. "We have some paperwork for Supervisor Bak." He went on, before turning around to look at me. "Bella, this is the Assistant Branch Head of the Asian Branch, Sammo Han Wong. Wong, this is Bella Morrison, our new exorcist."

First noticing my presence now, the Asian Branch Assistant took a few steps toward me, before politely bowing.

"Miss Morrison, it is a pleasure to meet you. I heard about your arrival at the European Branch from Supervisor Komui a few days ago."

"It's nice to meet you too, Wong." I smiled to the older scientist, thinking for a second whether or not I should address him with some kind of honorifics, the man being from Asia and all.

"As for Master Bak, he left the cafeteria a few minutes ago and went back to his office." Wong told us, looking up at one of the floors above us. _Oh god, do we have to walk all the way up there?_ I sighed, not having the energy to start walking up that many stairs while carrying a huge stack of papers in my arms, as a trio of younger scientists suddenly got my attention.

"Wong!"

The first one of the trio that spoke up was a rather short girl with two thick brown braids and a couple of round glasses. It was a bit embarrassing, I did remember these three from the manga, but I couldn't remember their names.

"Master Zu has lost his hearing aid again, and Fou and Supervisor Bak are both freaking out over it." The guy beside her said, seeming to be the same height and age as Kanda and Lavi, having messed brownish hair and dark eyes. Finally, the guy beside him, approximately having the same height as Lenalee, had short, straight black hair that sat flat on his forehead and small brown eyes, looking a little more sophisticated with the lab coat buttoned up.

"Do you know where Master Zu's hearing aid is?" The taller one of the trio sighed, as they stopped in front of Wong, all three of them now looking at Reever though.

"Section Leader Reever!" The guy exclaimed, a sudden glint of delight showing in his eyes.

"W-what brings you here, Section Leader Reever?" The girl asked politely, a slight blush showing up underneath her glasses. Honestly, I felt kind of overlooked here.

"I just need to drop off some paperwork for Supervisor Bak," The tired scientist answered, taking a step to the side and adding, "along with Bella."

I made a half-hearted wave. "That's me." I mumbled deadpanned, walking up beside Reever. "I'm Bella Morrison. Nice to meet you."

"Ah, my name is Lou Fa!" The short girl exclaimed, her entire face turning completely scarlet as she stumbled forward, trying to shake my hand firmly placed under the stack of papers, resulting in me almost dropping all of the papers on the floor, before both of us grabbed a hold of the stack in the last second, saving it from the drop. "I'm so sorry!"

"It's fine." I smiled softly to the nervous girl, before the taller guy walked up beside her with an expression of both embarrassment and annoyance.

"Lou Fa, be a little more careful!" He snapped at her, turning to me with a slight blush on his cheeks, and scratching the back of his head. "I'm Rikei, it's nice to meet you. And this is Shifu." He went on, looking at the short Chinese guy beside him, who politely nodded. _I haven't heard that guy say one word yet…_

"Miss Morrison is the new exorcist that Master Bak told us about." Wong said, the three young scientists looking gradually more interested.

"Oh, then what are you doing here?" Rikei asked. _Reever kind of said that a minute ago, didn't he?_

"I'm just helping Reever deliver some paperwork to Supervisor Bak." I smiled at him, ignoring the urge to tell him about my thoughts aloud.

"Yes about that, we should get going." Reever politely excused us from the trio of young scientists. Wong then helped us find the way to Bak's office, the walk up the trillion stairs nearly killing me on the way there.

Finally we entered a large Asian-styled office, a bit messy, but far from as bad as Komui's office.

"What was your hearing aid doing on my desk in the first place!?"

Three people were standing in the room besides Reever, Wong and me, seeming to be arguing with one another. The man with blond messy hair sighed, leaning back against the paper-filled wooden desk.

"Maybe I'm getting old?" The man that had to be at least in his nineties rubbed his ear a bit, as if trying to clear his own hearing.

Across from him was a very short girl standing, glaring furiously up at the older man, flame-colored short, orange hair poking out from under her purple hat to frame her face, with matching purple clothes that resemble a tube top and bikini. The odd-looking short girl, almost alien like, snarled, her crimson eyes glaring daggers at the old man.

"Damn straight you are, you stupid old fart!"

I grinned at the scenery in front of me. _I already love this place._

* * *

**A/N: I just realized Allen and Lenalee hasn't appeared for, like, six chapters. But worry not! They'll get back from their mission next chapter, promise ;)**


	12. What If?

So after Reever and I finally managed to drop off the paperwork, and I was introduced to Bak, Fou and Master Zu, we didn't really stay for that long. Reever just had something to discuss with Bak, so I spent the time conversing with Fou, the girl repeatedly challenging me to a fight. I kept (nervously) saying no, promising her though that we could spar another day (maybe).

We quickly left after that, Reever having more work and as it had gotten late, I decided to go eat in the cafeteria and then return to my room as there weren't anyone to keep me company any longer.

Spending time by myself suddenly got my thoughts on my family. I ended up simply pacing back and forth in my room, thinking and thinking about them. A heavy burden of worry had settled down in my mind, like a large boulder balancing on my head, wavering from one side to the other, giving me a headache and ready to fall anytime, crushing and shattering me in thousands of pieces.

Were they all right? For how long had I been away now? I ran around in London for about three weeks and then I arrived at the Order six days ago. Six days, was that all it had been since I got here? It felt like I had been here for much longer. Maybe it was because I read the manga, so I felt like I knew everybody a lot better than what would usually be the case. Come to think of it, was I acting too friendly around people? Too sentimental? Should I slow down and give people some space? What would mom and dad tell me? What were they doing right now? Were they worried about me? Oh no, what if they thought I had been kidnapped? Or murdered? Or that I ran away?! Oh god! What would they think if they knew what I was doing?! If they knew I was currently in a war?! Would they be proud? Sad? Worried? Would they want me to quit being an exorcist?

"Gaaah! I don't know!" I yelled, slamming my head hard against the wall.

…

"…Ow"

I rubbed my forehead, walking over to stare out the large window. _I wish I knew how things are going back in my own world…_

I breathed out, putting my hurting forehead against the cold surface of the window, continuing to stare at the dark sky.

"Stop it Bella. You chose this. You have no rights to complain."

_That's right. I got away from my own boring life. I was given a second chance to make a difference in the world. Of course it would be a lot easier celebrating, if I knew my family and friends don't go around worrying. Oh well. It's not like I can do much about it at the moment…_

…

"…I'm hungry…"

Removing my head from the window, I looked over at the clock, realizing it was close to being midnight. _Wow. Time runs by fast when you do nothing but worry…_

"Oh well!"

I stretched my upper body, deciding I might as well go get something to eat, as I wasn't that tired anyway. I quickly put on an oversized sweatshirt and changed into my pajama-shorts, deciding nobody would be seeing me during this time of the night. I was too lazy to put on a pair of shoes, so I ended up exiting my room barefooted.

Not gonna lie, it was a bit creepy running around the Order in the middle of the night when everybody was asleep, with an exception for some of the scientists of course. But at the same time I kind of liked it – it felt like I had everything to myself that way.

"Alright, what do we have on the menu today…?" I mumbled, rummaging through Jerry's fridge, looking for something delicious. I ended up pulling out a half-cut chocolate cake and some milk.

I jumped up on the kitchen table, placing the plate with cake on my lab and a big glass of milk by my side.

"Mmmh ~" I grinned wide like a little kid on Christmas eve, stuffing my mouth full of Jerry's delicious chocolate cake – I swear, there wasn't one thing that guy couldn't cook in this world (or any other world for that matter). I could really get used to this, getting up every midnight and eating all of Jerry's desserts. Soon I would be known as the "dessert thief".

I giggled to myself, swinging my legs back and forth while humming the melody of "Happy", smacking my hands together and clapping whenever I made it to the chorus.

"Bella?"

I nearly jumped out of my own skin, losing the fork in my hand and choking (very ungracefully) on some of the cake in my mouth. I turned around on the kitchen table, and saw to my own surprise Allen about to enter Jerry's kitchen.

"Allen?"

"Hi." The boy greeted me with a smile, jumping over the table and walking over to me. "I see you had the same idea as me."

I just nodded, completely dumbfounded. _Caught red-handed, huh? _Allen picked up the lost fork, politely handing it over to me before turning around to look through the refrigerator. I felt Timcanpy land on top of my head, as I simply continued to stare at Allen.

"You're back from your mission?" I finally asked, watching as Allen pulled out a plate with sweet dumplings.

"Yeah, I just returned." The boy answered my question, jumping up on the kitchen table beside me, and started to devour one of the dumplings. "How did your first mission go, Bella?"

I grinned back at him, returning to eat my cake. "It went great. We got the Innocence and everything – I'm the one who found it."

Allen laughed softly, munching and swallowing another dumpling. "I'm glad to hear that."

"Welcome back." We both greeted each other in unison, exchanging grinning expressions.

"Where's Double-dot?" I chuckled, taking a sip of my glass with milk. "Did you get so hungry you ended up eating him?"

Allen laughed. "No, I snuck out once he fell asleep."

"Smart." I praised him.

We ended up sitting in a comfortable silence after that, each of us sitting and eating our own food. Allen walked over to the fridge twice to find something new to eat. I sat in my own thoughts for a bit, wondering whether I should try and discuss the matters of the Fourteenth and the war with him. _I guess it can't hurt to try._

"Hey, Allen…?"

"Hmm…?" The boy looked up from the half-eaten apple in his hand.

"What's it like…sharing memories with the Fourteenth…?"

Allen jerked, looking up at me in surprise. I met his stare with a soft smile, setting the chocolate cake aside for the moment, and pulled my legs up on the countertop.

"I haven't exactly been here for long…" I began, staring up at the ceiling. "And I don't know that much about this war." _That's a lie... I know much more about this war than Allen probably does…_

"So, you want to know about the Fourteenth?" Allen asked, a gentle smile on his face. I nodded, hoping I wasn't putting him in an uncomfortable position.

"Well, to be honest," Allen leaned his head against the wall, his eyes resting on the floor. "I don't hear that much from him." _That's because the Fourteenth hasn't been fully awakened yet. _"I sometimes see him in my reflection. But that's pretty much it."

I nodded, feeling the topic in our conversation dying. I was a bit disappointed; I was kind of hoping I might have gotten some more information out of him. I couldn't start saying my theories about all of this aloud, if I hadn't officially "heard" the right facts yet. They would know something was up. _Guess I'm gonna have to approach it differently…_

"This is probably gonna sound a bit weird…" I made a soft chuckle-like sigh, shifting my head to meet Allen's gaze. "But I think there is more to this war than it seems."

Allen's eyes widened in surprise, disbelief written all over his face. _Yep. I'm extremely bad at pretending not to know anything._ I quickly came up with an excuse in my head.

"I mean… the whole thing with the existence of the Earl, the Noah and the 14th. It just all seems a bit…rubbish. Like there has to be a deeper meaning behind it all."

"You know…" Allen mumbled, a warm smile appearing. "My Master told me the exact same thing before he disappeared; that there is another side to this war."

"Really…?"

"Yeah. I probably shouldn't be telling you this though."

I grinned at the boy. "I can keep a secret."

Allen laughed, taking another bite of the apple in his hand. "Can you keep another secret Central would probably lock me up for exposing?"

"Sure."

Allen looked away from me and down at the floor again, seeming to be wondering whether he should tell me or not. "As a kid I turned the only person that ever loved me into an Akuma. Mana, he was my adoptive father." He put a hand to the scar on his eye. "He's the one that gave me this so I would be able to see the souls of the Akuma." I sat completely still, listening carefully to Allen's words. Though I already knew all of this, it was so very different hearing it face to face from a person I thought was nothing else but a fictional character nothing more than a month ago. "Apparently Mana had a connection to the 14th. They were brothers."

A short silence followed, as I simply stared at Allen, and Allen stared at the floor. Even though I already knew all of this, I honestly didn't know how to respond. Should I say I was sorry on his behalf? Should I say something encouraging? I just didn't know…

"Even so," Allen suddenly said, breaking the silence. "Mana always told me to keep walking forward. So that's exactly what I'm going to do."

I grinned again. "That's a pretty good quote to have. Mana must have been pretty wise." I leaned my head against the wall, letting my eyes close for a few seconds. "'Keep walking forward' huh? I'll remember that."

"Do you have any quotes you like to tell yourself, Bella?" Allen asked after having finished his apple, throwing the core in the trashcan. I thought for a bit, letting the words sink into my head.

"Love your enemies…" I turned my head to look at the boy again, a smirk making it to my lips. "It pisses them off."

"Bella…!" Allen groaned in defeat, his smile widening nonetheless. We both ended up laughing after that.

* * *

"Welcome back, Lenalee!" I shouted as I saw the familiar dark-haired girl entering the cafeteria, still wearing her uniform and a few bruises here and there on her legs and cheeks. Lenalee smiled brightly, tripping over and sitting by the bench Lavi, Allen, Link, and I were currently eating by. Lavi returned from his mission with Bookman this morning and now Lenalee was back too? They all just came crashing back from their missions at the same time. _Lucky for me. Then I won't have to spend the day by myself again, wandering around in my room worrying about stuff._

"I'm back."

"How did your mission go, Lenalee?" Allen asked, his mouth full of food.

"It went just fine." Lenalee answered with a sweet smile, turning to me. "I heard you were on your first mission, Bella. How did that go?"

I grinned, the feeling of pride beaming off of me. "It went great, we got the Innocence and everything. I'm the one who found it."

"Eh~ you're still proud of that Bella?" Lavi asked me teasingly, making me pout in offence.

"I bet you're just jealous because it turns out that I'm smarter than you." I teased him back, my pout turning into a smirk.

"Ah~ what are you talking about Bella? That was just a lucky guess – let's call it beginner luck!"

"Then I'm gonna have non-stop beginner luck, you know."

"AH! I can't take hearing this _again_!" Allen groaned dramatically.

"You're such a kid, Beansprout." Lavi teased Allen, receiving a glare for calling him 'Beansprout'.

"Yeah Cotton ball, it's just a friendly disagreement." I smiled innocently at Allen, the boy whipping his head around to look at me with wide yes.

"C-Cotton ball?!"

Lavi broke out laughing, while Lenalee tried to stifle down her own sweet giggles, holding a hand to her mouth.

"Yup, that's your new nickname. You know, because of your white hair." I grinned at him, crisscrossing my legs on the bench in pride.

"That's mean Bella…" Allen fake-cried. "I already have Lavi and Kanda calling me Beansprout – I don't need you to come up with another nickname."

"Eh~ too bad! I like it! I came up with it last night after our talk in the kitchen."

"Bella!" Allen hissed, shooting me a warning look.

"What…?"

"That's odd. I don't recall going to the kitchen after the return of our mission last night, Walker." Link shot Allen a skeptical glare. _Oh. Ups…_ I ended up laughing alongside Lavi and Lenalee, watching as Allen tried to avoid Link's accusing glare, before the Inspector slammed his cup of tea down on the table.

"You sneaked out while I was asleep, didn't you!?"

"Ah, I'm sorry Link! I was hungry!" Allen tried to excuse himself, still looking the other way.

"Do you realize the position you're in?! I am supposed to be watching you 24 hours a day, with no exceptions!" Link scolded Allen; Lavi, Lenalee and I continued to simply laugh.

"You know," I said, turning to grin at Link. "You're a really bad watchman, Double-dot!"

"I – don't call me that!" Link snapped at me. Lenalee continued to make that sweet laugh of hers, making me a bit envious. _I wish my laugh was that pretty – I bet I sound like a monkey or a witch when laughing…_

"I'm so glad."

I looked a bit surprised over at Lenalee, cocking my head to the side in confusion over her comment.

"For what?"

"For you, Bella," she smiled softly at me, making me feel even more puzzled, "it finally feels like you have settled down and gotten used to things around here. When we first met, you just acted so stiff and polite, only showing your true side on rare occasions. Now it seems like you can finally relax enough to be yourself around everyone."

_Oh? I did that? I didn't even notice…_

I gave Lenalee a smile of content, placing my chin in my hands.

"I think I have finally gotten used to this place myself."

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for the favorites, follows, reviews and for reading the story! Let me know what you think by leaving a review :)**


	13. A Dangerous Game of Tag

"I-I can't move…" Allen panted, crouching slightly in his legs while glaring daggers at his opponent – Kanda.

"Hah." Rapunzel mocked, a smirk clear on his face. "Your bark's worse than your bite, Beansprout."

"No surprises here then Kanda." Allen dumped down on the ground in defeat, a broken sword made of wood in hand. "I guess I really can't hope to match you with a sword."

"Wow…" I mumbled, resting my chin in my hand placed on my knees and looked at the scenery in front of me with a deadpanned expression. "When those two fight, they _really_ fight."

Lavi laughed beside me, having a sleeping Timcanpy on top of his head. "Yeah, but it sure is fun to watch!"

I smirked in enjoyment. "Don't feel bad Cotton ball! Rapunzel's got years of practice in sword fighting, so you still have some time to catch up!" I yelled in mock encouragement.

Both boys turned their heads away from the fight, glaring at me.

"Don't call me that!"

Lavi and I both broke out laughing at the enraged expression Allen and Kanda gave each other from yelling the same thing at the same time.

"Now," Kanda said, pointing his wooden sword in front of Allen's nose. "Shall I finish up by giving you a crew cut?" _I think that's the closest I'll ever get to see Kanda excited over something._

"Now, now…" Allen mumbled, a sudden dark smirk on his face. "I don't seem to recall ever saying I'd lost!"

At the end of his sentence, Allen wrapped both of his legs around Kanda's outstretched arm, catching the Japanese exorcist off guard.

"Why you –!"

Kanda was tackled to the floor, but quickly got up again. He then threw himself at the white-haired boy, both exorcists breaking into a fist-to-fist fight.

"Now that's not something you see everyday; those two hanging out together…" A new voice suddenly commented. I turned around to find Johnny having entered the training room, smiling at the two exorcists fighting one another.

"Hi Johnny." I greeted the scientist, grinning at him. "I'm not really sure I'd define it as 'hanging out' when it's those two though…"

Johnny chuckled in delight, walking up to stand behind Lavi and me while watching the battle.

"Yeah, you know those two, there's no handling them." Lavi laughed, turning to look back at Allen and Kanda. "This was supposed to be an ordinary fencing training session. But the two of them just got all heated up."

"Why you! – Pretending you were all worn out to trick me!" Kanda yelled, blocking one of Allen's fists.

"Deception is a key part of strategy!"

"Just die! You fake gentleman bastard!"

"I learned it all from my master…"

_They sure know how to bitch-talk one another…_

"It's just a cat fight now." I mumbled amused.

"Apparently the loser gets his head shaved." Lavi explained to Johnny, turning back to look at him. "So, what brings you here then, Johnny?"

"Hmm? Oh! I actually just came to say that I finished your new uniforms."

"Really?!" I turned around, beaming in excitement. "Are they cool-looking? Because, you know, my other uniform already got ruined from the first mission. Is that supposed to happen?"

"No, no it was a pretty quick uniform I made you back then," Johnny explained, waving his hands dismissively in the air, "the new uniforms have a lot better defense than the old ones, and the design is much cooler!" Johnny beamed, seeming to be very proud of his own work. "I already placed them on your bed in your rooms, so everything's ready for whenever you guys have a mission."

"Thanks Johnny."

"Anytime. You know, you might wanna clean your room a bit, Bella." Johnny mumbled, making me pout and turn my head the opposite way. "I nearly tripped over one of your shoes on my way to your bed."

Lavi cracked up laughing, turning to me. "I didn't know you were a messy head Bella!"

I raised my nose dramatically in the air, my pout staying despite my blushing cheeks. "It's not _that_ bad." I tried to defend myself, my dignity being at stake here. "Besides, I have seen your and Bookman's room, Lavi – it's worse than mine with all of those books lying around!"

"That's true." Johnny agreed, turning around and waving a goodbye. "Oh well, I have to get back to work."

"Bye." I gave him a light wave, before whipping my head around to face Lavi. "Stop laughing!"

* * *

"Eh~ do I have to!?" I whined, turning to make a run for it, but Kanda stopped me with his sword, his eyes daring me to take another step out of the training ground.

"Yes." He answered cold, still holding his sword in front of my nose.

"Mō! Lenalee!" I whined, turning with pleading eyes to the dark-haired girl that arrived a few minutes ago, sitting beside Allen and Lavi on the sidelines. She gave me an apologetic but reassuring smile.

"Stop whining like a kid, Klutz!" Kanda snapped irritated. "Training everyday is necessary if you want to survive here! And as far as I know, you have been slacking off lately."

I pouted, turning my head to look back at Rapunzel.

"Don't worry Bella. I'm sure Kanda just wants to help make you stronger." Lenalee reassured me. I whipped my head back to look at her, a mix of skeptic and disbelief written all over my face as I thrust my hand out, pointing an accusing finger at the Japanese exorcist.

"No he doesn't! He is just looking for a good reason to beat me black and blue!"

"I can't deny that." Kanda grinned darkly at me, making my eyes widen.

"See?!"

"Just get your damn weapon ready Klutz." Rapunzel snapped, pulling back his sword and getting in a fighting position.

"Fine!" I pull both of my fans out from my belt, crouching down in my legs and readying myself for an attack.

Kanda snorted in mock, giving me a skeptical look. "I refuse to believe you managed to defeat a Level 2, keep it from attacking the Finders _and_ was the one to find the Innocence back during the mission."

I glared back at him, feeling nothing else but offended by his words. He simply grinned arrogantly back at me.

"I need to see how good of a fighter you are before I believe it. Actions talk louder than words, Klutz."

And then he jumped forward, raising his sword to attack me.

I yelped in surprise, barely jumping out of the way and dodging Kanda's mugen by a few inches in the last second. The sword connected with the ground instead, making a large mark appear. _Holy crap!_ I steadied my stance, before staring at the deep mark with wide eyes full of disbelief, my mouth hanging open in shock.

"You nearly hit me!" I snapped at him, my mind still frozen a bit from shock. _But then again, it's Kanda. What was I expecting?_

"That's the point." The dark-haired exorcist answered coldly, swinging his sword once, before getting ready to attack me again. "You better start thinking about counterattacking if you want to survive, Klutz."

"Hang in there, Bella!" I heard Lavi cheer from the sidelines.

"Don't be so harsh on her Bakanda!" Allen snapped.

I took a deep breath, watching the Japanese closely as he took a step toward me. When he jumped to attack the second time, I was a little more prepared, meaning I managed to dodge it safely this time, landing steadily on my feet. I felt my eyes widen as Kanda suddenly attacked again, not even taking a break like he did before. He continued to swing his sword out after me repeatedly, keeping both of us on our feet all the time, never letting any of us catch a breath.

"Was all of that simply talk, Klutz." Kanda mocked as I barely dodged another one of his attacks. "No way in hell did you defeat a Level 2 by simply _dodging_ its attacks."

I gritted my teeth in irritation at his words.

"No I didn't!" I hissed, throwing one of my fans at him, the weapon flying in an oval line that Kanda easily dodged. Kanda watched quite unimpressed as the fan came flying the same way back from behind, raising his mugen and hitting the fan aside, the sound of metal against metal making me cringe. I watched helplessly as the fan slide to the side, away and out of my reach.

"It's lucky you have two weapons." Kanda stated matter of fact, turning to face me with a dark grin. "Or else you would have been pretty damn screwed by now."

_Ugh…_

I let my eyes switch from looking at Kanda to my lost weapon, and then back at Kanda, weighting my chances of being fast enough to reach it before he were to cut me in two, if I ran now. _No. Don't do that. It's such an obvious act; he is bound to land a clean hit before I even make it halfway._ But if I ran in an oval line the other way…

This time I was the one to attack first, setting off and running in a straight line toward Kanda, once I was close enough, I threw my fan at him. While the Japanese exorcist was occupied dodging my weapon, I abruptly changed course, turning right and running in an oval line around him. Kanda obviously dodged my attack, meaning I caught the flying fan on the other side of him and then quickly ran for the one he threw to the side. I jumped to the side as he tried to land a hit with his sword at me again, and then slid across the floor, grabbing my lost fan in the process and getting up.

_Okay, I'm gonna have to start using more powerful attacks._ I yelped as I saw Kanda lung for me again, only this time I wasn't so fast, meaning he managed to land a clean hit with his fist in my stomach.

I groaned in pain from the attack, my lungs seeming to be empty from air all of a sudden. I mentally forced my legs to move and jumped to the side as Kanda hit out after me again. I noticed the angry comments Lavi and Allen yelled from the sidelines, snapping at Kanda for being too harsh, the samurai not really looking bothered by it, but simply getting ready to attack again.

_Okay, calm down. _I took a deep breath, letting the air fill my lungs again._ If I remember correctly, the whole elemental-attack-thingy works this way: first seal is air, second seal is water, third seal is earth and fourth seal is fire. I _think _that's how I wanted it to be when I created it, at least. I'm gonna have to try it out to be sure though. Good. I already know for a fact that the first seal is air from when I used it back on the Level 2. So I'll just do a little experiment on Rapunzel then…_

"First opening." I mumbled, a green glow from my fans concluding I was doing it correctly. "Third seal."

I swung my fan at Kanda, as if I were to sent a large gust of wind at him, and felt my eyes nearly popping out my head, as a huge boulder at the size of an elephant head, was enforced from the fan, being thrown (fast) across the room, right toward Kanda.

Kanda's eyes widened in shock, the Japanese jumping to the side and dodging the boulder, the massive rock colliding with the wall and making a small crater appear.

"What the hell?!" Kanda hissed, turning his head to glare at me in confusion. "What the hell was that!?"

"Wow!" I heard Lavi exclaim in glee from the sidelines.

"Eh~" I grinned at Kanda innocently, waving one of my fans from side to side in an attempt to irritate him. "I forgot to tell you that? My Innocence is capable of elemental attacks."

"Huh!?"

"Hey, that's like my Innocence!" Lavi exclaimed surprised, seeming to be even more interested in our battle now. I turned my head to give the redhead a grin.

"Yup, kinda."

Kanda growled, making me snap my head back to the current fight, both of us resuming to hit and dodge one another's attacks. I swung under one of Kanda's fists, stumbling to regain my balance and gripping my weapon.

_Fourth seal!_

As I swung my fans this time, a long line of hot, fire-blazing flames were enforced, making a burn mark appear on one of the marble pillars as Kanda dodged it. The Japanese grunted in annoyance, swinging his sword at me again. _And lastly,_ I thought, gripping my fans with a smirk, _we have the second._

_Second seal!_

As the Japanese exorcist jumped in the air, I swung my fans, knowing fully well he couldn't dodge any attack in the air. Turquoise colored blue water was enforced from the fan, sent flying with a course right for Kanda, and as it hit him he…

…Got soaked…

…

"What?!" Kanda hissed after a few seconds of silence, looking down at his now completely drenched clothes.

_That's it?! My enemy gets soaked?! Are you kidding me?!_

Lavi broke out laughing, Lenalee and Allen looking a bit confused.

"Good one Bella!"

…

"Um…" I mumbled nervously, as Kanda suddenly looked up from his drenched clothes, his wet bangs sticking to his forehead, a glare that could easily kill being shot at me.

"Ups…" I started laughing nervously as the samurai tightened his grip around his sword, taking one threatening step after another toward me. _Crap… he's gonna kill me._

"I, uh…" My eyes darted nervously around the room; squinting a bit as they saw a door not too far from here. "I'll take my leave then!" I finished, turning around on my heels and sprinting across the floor, course right for the door.

"Get back here right now you stupid Klutz, so I can cut you in two!" I heard Kanda roar from behind me, making me pick up my speed, and run for my dear god forsaken life.

"Run for your life Bella!" I heard Lavi laugh after me, as I turned in the door, darting down the left hallway.

"Get back here Klutz!" Kanda yelled in rage, following me out the training room and down the hallway, Mugen raised in hand.

"Never!" I screamed, turning around a corner as I heard Kanda catching up, nearly slicing me with his sword (damn he was fast) but missed. He ended up running a bit too far down the other hallway as he ran too fast to make such an abrupt turn, giving me a few extra seconds of advantage.

_Hiding place!_ I told myself, turning down another hallway, not daring to look back in case he was right behind me. _I need a hiding place!_ There was no goddamn way I was going to be able to outrun him, not for a long period of time at least.

I stopped abruptly as I saw the Science Department, the sole of my feet screeching against the floor from the sudden stop. _That'll have to do!_

"Hi Bella." Rob greeted me as I basically sprinted into the room, nearly colliding with him in the process.

"I'm not here!" I told him, running a little further down the room before I made it to Reever's table, him and Johnny seemed to be discussing something. They both looked up at me in surprise.

"Oh, hi Bella! What are you doing here? You seem to be in a –" Johnny began with a smile, but I quickly cut him off, smacking my free hand in front of his mouth, my other hand still holding a tight grip around my weapon.

"I'm not here, okay?"

"Huh?" Reever mumbled a bit confused, puzzlement all over his face as well as Johnny's.

"I'm gonna cut each one of your limbs off, Klutz!" I heard Kanda roar, still not having made it to the science division yet. I cringed at the livid image.

"Long story short, Kanda is trying to kill me. So please don't rant me out, okay?" I didn't wait for an answer; instead I quickly withdrew my hand from Johnny's face and crawled under Reever's worktable, hoping it would be able to conceal me from the raging demon approaching. I sat completely still, not even daring to breathe, as I heard Kanda entering the room with a loud snarl.

"Where is she!? Where is that idiot-Klutz!?"

"Hi there Kanda!" I heard Jiji exclaim excited. "Whoa, what happened to you? You're clothes are soaked."

Kanda started to yell and swear, repeatedly snarling at the scientists to stop playing dumb and say where I had gone off to.

"Um…" Johnny began, making my breath catch in my throat. _Don't you dare rant me out Johnny!_ "Bella just passed by a few seconds ago. I think she might have gone off to the cafeteria."

And with that said, I heard Kanda dart off, out of the science department, and down the hallway, most likely running for the cafeteria. _Thank god…_

"Thank you _so_ much Johnny…" I whispered, crawling out from under the table. I should probably try to avoid any sort of colliding with Kanda the following days in the hallways. _I think this proves I shouldn't experiment with my weapons using Kanda as test subject._ I still ended up grinning at the memory of Kanda's expression when I dropped the water on him.

* * *

"Johnny!"

Furiously, I stomped back into the science department, holding a tight grip around the red piece of clothes in my hand. Lavi followed me, his bandana hanging loosely around his neck, and two arms behind his head, laughing loudly at my behavior. Said scientist looked a bit surprised up from the papers in front of him, giving me a confused look.

"What the hell is this!?" I hissed, holding forth the red-colored fabric of clothes. Lavi began to laugh even louder, as Johnny's face went from confused to pale and a bit nervous.

So basically, I managed to sneak off safely from the science department and avoided running into Kanda on my way back to my own room. After having taken a bath and put some clean clothes on, I decided to have a quick look at my new uniform. All in all, Johnny had done a pretty good job with the new red design. He had made a new, but identical pair of fingerless gloves and brown shoelace boots for me, and I was quite pleased with the jacket's design. It had the usual large sleeves, but the red trimmings and new ornaments including aiguillettes and ranking stripes on the shoulders, had managed to pep it up. There even followed a cool sash-like band attached to a belt for us to wear, and then an extra brown belt for me to have my weapon in. So yeah, everything was ecstatic, until I realized I had been given a pair of thigh-high black socks instead of leggings and a matching red skirt. And not just any skirt, a freaking pleated miniskirt!

Once I realized this, I was so enraged that I started thrashing and throwing stuff around in my room, yelling things in my own language that most likely made the angels cry. Lavi heard me (as we nearly live beside each other) as he eventually came to check up on me, just as I was about ready to exit my room and have a talk with Johnny. He ended up skipping after me, laughing and making me even angrier by yelling cheeky remarks.

"I'll tell you what it is!" I continued to yell hysterically, waving the fabric in my hand back and forth. "It's a freaking skirt, that's what it is! I thought we had a deal Johnny – no skirts! Last time I checked, this is defined as a skirt!"

"There, there. Easy Bella…" Johnny laughed a bit nervously, getting up from his chair and walking over with his hands raised in defense. "Trust me, it'll be a lot easier for you to move around in. Besides, it's not even _that_ short, I mean you should see Lenalee's –"

"I don't care what Lenalee's uniform looks like!" I interrupted him. I _knew_ what her uniform looked like anyway; it was this long jacket that was _barely_ long enough to pass as a short dress that then ended in a frilled shirt. "What if I jump and people see my underwear?"

"Well, that's why I made you a pair of shorts to wear underneath, so that you won't worry about that." Johnny tried to explain.

"You call those shorts? They're so short I might as well wear them as my panties!" If I weren't so furious I probably would have blushed after saying that. Lavi was currently standing beside me, a cheeky grin suddenly forming on his lips.

"Eh~ I definitely wanna go on a mission with Bella now."

"Stop it!" I snapped, turning to hold a warning finger in front of him, daring him to say another word. The stupid redhead simply grinned back in response.

"You have to remake it Johnny! There is no way I'm wearing this." I turned back to Johnny, less angry now and a more pleading look plastered on my face. The scientist simply gave me an apologetic smile.

"I can't Bella, I don't have the time."

I groaned dramatically in defeat, turning on my heels and stomped back out of the room, Lavi tripping after me.

"Hey, when we go on a mission together, and you need it, you are free to stand on my shoulders, Bella~"

"Stop it!" I yelled again, my cheeks burning up and most likely turning the same red color as Lavi's hair, half from embarrassment and half from anger.

_Stupid redheaded rabbit! Stupid Johnny! Stupid uniform!_

* * *

**A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews, story alerts favorites and support in general! You guys are awesome. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	14. The Phantom Thief G

"Ah! I'm sorry!" A brown-haired young, French woman exclaimed, as she bumped into Kanda after having turned around to march out of the police station. She looked up from the ground, only to instantly freeze as she saw him.

"Watch where you're going." Kanda answered her coldly, pushing her aside. _Watch where you're going yourself, Rapunzel._ Instead of hitting him like I probably would have done, the woman instead got a dreamy expression, staring after Kanda in awe. I guess I could understand her reaction; he was ridiculously pretty for a guy.

"Are you Inspector Galmar?" Kanda turned to the brown-haired man with a moustache, standing a little further behind the woman that just collided with Kanda. The Inspector's face quickly turned from horrified to an irritated glare, walking up and getting daringly close to Kanda's face. I knew for a fact that the reason for this, was that the French girl was his daughter and he was scared shitless of her falling in love with a man and leaving him.

"And who are you?" He asked, having a glaring contest with Kanda.

"Um, we heard that some friends of ours are being held here." I answered his question, pulling in Kanda's sleeve to have him take a step back and avoid him slicing the Inspector in two. Kanda gave me a glare, pulling his arm back to himself.

"Do you think we might be allowed to see them?" Allen asked from beside me, giving Inspector Galmar one of his friendly gentleman smiles. Noticing the Rose Cross on Allen's chest, the Inspector quickly got something else on his mind.

"The Black Order?! But what are you people doing in a place like this…?" He looked utterly shocked and a bit speechless.

* * *

So I was currently on a mission in Paris. And not just any mission. I was on a mission for the Phantom-_freaking_-Thief G arc.

So I had been at the Order for a little over a month now. During that month, I had been on two missions besides the one with Lavi and Kanda. The second one I was sent on with Lenalee and Krory was surprisingly easy, only involving a few level 2 Akuma and no Innocence. The third one, where I was teamed up with Chaoji and Marie, was more difficult as there were a couple of level 3 Akuma. In the end I nearly got myself badly injured by one of the level 3's, but Marie managed to save me in the last second, receiving a dislocated shoulder in the process. Needless to say, I felt so bad that I used the following two days helping him with (almost) everything possible.

As Marie's shoulder was still healing, I was sent on this mission instead of him (or rather, to go get some of the staff from the Order that had been imprisoned, including Jiji). I had talked myself into believing that being the reason for his dislocated shoulder was a good thing, as Marie that way wouldn't lose two of his fingers on this mission, which happened in the canon – of course he didn't know that.

_Oh well..._

* * *

"I'm sorry, but releasing them won't be possible." Inspector Galmar stated as he showed us the way into the imprisoned (innocent) suspects. "Your friends are prime suspects in a case we are currently investigating."

Stepping into the room where the cells were, I mentally face-palmed myself at how many suspects there actually were. There were much more than I could possibly count, and they were all wearing the same Phantom Thief G outfit; a bodysuit and a huge, round mask with one eye in the center (a bit of a creepy outfit when there were so many of them). _To think a nine-year-old kid can cause something like this…_

"They'll be in here somewhere. I'm afraid you'll have to find them yourselves." Inspector Galmar stated. _What!? _Allen, Kanda and I all made the same disbelieving expression at the scenery and the Inspector's words – Link, like usual, simply had a blank reaction to it.

"And how the hell are we gonna do that?!" I snapped at the Inspector in disbelief.

"What is all this?!" Allen asked, looking around in confusion, followed by Kanda mumbling something about this looking like a Halloween-party.

"Inspector, who are all these people?"

It took the Inspector a few seconds to answer the question.

"…Phantom Thief G. The ones we've captured so far."

"Phantom Thief G? That criminal who is at large in Paris?" Link asked a bit uninterested.

"So you caught him? And so many too…?" I hear Allen mumbled, staring in awe at the multiple people imprisoned.

"NO!"

I turned around to find two of the Phantom Thief G suspects, having both taken their mask off and leaning against the glass, desperation in their eyes.

"We're not G at all!"

"We were just made into G!"

More people were now leaning against the glass, reaching their hands out under the bars by their feet and pulling at the Inspector's legs, yelling for their own lives.

"You've gotta believe us, Inspector Galmar! We're all just victims!"

"G's the one you're after!"

"If we're the culprits, then what happened to all the things we stole?!"

"Oh, shut up!" Inspector Galmar yelled, trying to pull his legs free from the multiple hands. "There's no point playing innocent; you were all caught red-handed!" _Poor things, I feel really sorry for them._ I still ended up grinning at the sight of the Inspector's caught legs though.

"No Inspector," Another inmate began, looking with begging eyes, "surely even you must have realized by now. That what we've been telling you is the truth! Phantom Thief G is no ordinary man!"

"Hmm?" The Inspector hummed, having a sudden weird expression, "Whatever could you be talking about?"

"Aw, crap! We've lost him again!"

"He's playing dump!"

"Should a police officer be ignoring the truth like that?!"

I tilted my head to the side; playing along and pretending like I didn't understand what was going on like the rest of the group – even Timcanpy looked confused.

"I have no idea what's going on…" Kanda mumbled irritated, looking like one big question mark.

"I think he's forgotten we're even here…" Allen murmured.

"Exorcists…? Is that you exorcists?"

We all four turned around simultaneously, to find three Finders and Jiji leaning up against the glass, crying their eyes out.

"You came for us!" Jiji whines, sniffing like a little kid.

"Thank god!"

"You've gotta get us out of here!"

"Jiji?!" Allen exclaimed. "And the Finder squad too!"

Before I could even make it over to the cell they were placed in and ask whether they were okay, Kanda had kicked the glass, nearly making it shatter and making all four grown men jump back into the corner, hugging each other in comfort.

"And what the hell have you punks been doing?" Kanda snarled, glaring daggers at the four men.

"Waah! We're sorry!"

I sighed, walking over and lightly smacking Kanda's arm. "Stop it Rapunzel." I mumbled, squatting down in front of the cell, hearing an enraged growl from behind me.

"What happened?" I asked softly not to make the four men cry even more, ignoring the feeling of a glare that could probably kill in my back.

"Truth is, we don't have a clue what's going on either." One of the Finders sobbed, squatting down along with Jiji on the other side of the glass.

"We came here because we heard that strange things had been happening to the locals, "Jiji began, trying to hold back tears, "so we wanted to find out if there was Innocence involved."

"Komui told us that much. And apparently he hasn't heard a word from you since." Kanda snapped annoyed. Allen squatted down beside me, and I let my head fall to the side in a questioning motion.

"Then what?"

"We were just carrying out our investigation!" Jiji wailed, "but then…"

"Somehow we just found ourselves in these crazy outfits, locked up in this cell!" They all four finished simultaneously, all three Finders returning to cry. _Jeez, man up will you?_

"Whaa…?" Allen sweat dropped in disbelief.

"We apologize profusely!" Jiji went on, being the only one of them that hadn't started to cry again. "However! Thanks to this little incident, we've become certain of one important thing! The Innocence in question has something to do with Phantom Thief G!"

Both Allen and Kanda gave him a skeptical look, obviously not believing Jiji's theory. Behind us, Inspector Galmar was still struggling to get loose from the inmates.

"D-don't look at me like that! I may be wearing a ridiculous outfit, but I'm being serious here!" Jiji yelled.

"So? What makes you think that?" Allen asked, not looking like he was even close to believing Jiji.

"This is Bonnaire-neesan." Jiji introduced as a person with huge lips, fake eyelashes and beard (?!) sat on top of one of the Finders. "She's the boss of all of us prisoners. She's been in here as a suspect in the G case for half a year now."

"_Neesan?" I don't know if Jiji has been in here for too long, but that does not look like a female_. I could tell both Allen and Kanda were thinking the exact same thing from their expressions.

"Phantom Thief G is no mere human," Bonnaire-n… urgh … Bonnaire-_neesan_ explained, "Just as his name suggests, he is a ghost. There are three things we know about him. First: he wears an outrageous costume. Second: without fail, he always sends a note the day before he commits a crime. And third: G has no physical form."

If I didn't already know the explanation behind the Phantom Thief G, I know I would have shuddered at the last comment. _Luckily though, I do! So no need to get scared!_

"That's why he always uses the body of another to perform his crimes." Bonnaire-neesan went on. "No matter how many times this idiot Inspector catches him, a new G just pops up every time."

"Stop spreading this nonsense Bonnaire!" Inspector Galmar suddenly yelled, finally having freed himself from the prisoners. "You're just trying to escape the guilty verdict!" _Ugh, this guy is extremely thickheaded…_

"The audience is over. We're leaving, now!"

"Nooooo! Don't goooo!" Jiji and the Finders started to wail again, clinging on to mine and Allen's legs like the other inmates just did with the Inspector.

"Don't leave us here!"

"You've gotta get us out!"

"I wanna eat Jerry's food again!"

"What do you think?" Allen asked me, both of us not even bothering to try and get out of the four men's clinging grasps.

"I might not be an educated psychologist, but I can tell when people are generally lying," I began, comforting patting Jiji's hand. _That's a total lie. But Marie isn't here to confirm that they aren't lying, so I have to do something to fill out his roll and not change the plot too much._ "I haven't seen signs of any of the inmates lying – they all sound pretty convinced about this Phantom Thief G guy."

"Thief, Ghost, or whatever it is, if there's Innocence involved we just have to retrieve it." Kanda stated coldly, making a I-don't-give-a-shit-about-these-guys-look.

"Huh?! What are you talking about!?" The Inspector shouted hysterically, turning toward us. "This is my case!"

"Inspector!" A police officer exclaimed, running in and holding forth a note shaped like a 'G'. "We have received another note from Phantom Thief G!"

I smirked at that, giving Jiji's hand a light, reassuring squeeze. _Here we go…_

* * *

"Hey, when is something gonna happen, I'm about to freeze my ass off sitting still like this!" I hissed, pulling my coat over my ears in an attempt to get warmer. It was the middle of December, it was snowing and we were actually sitting outside completely still in the middle of the night. "This is why I wanted Johnny to make a pair of pants instead of a skirt to my uniform."

Kanda simply ignored my complaining, glancing down from the large statue we were currently sitting on, to make sure the two police officers we had to knock out hadn't regained consciousness yet. _I never in my life imagined I would get away with knocking out a police officer._

We were currently sitting outside the Louvre building, waiting for Phantom Thief G to show up. Allen and Link were somewhere else on the other side of the building. Admittedly, I was quite disappointed Kanda wouldn't allow me to have a quick look at the inside of the Louvre. I mean, it was one of the world's largest museums (believe it or not, stuff like that did interest me) _and_ it was a historical monument. This was my first time visiting Paris, and the fact that a certain moody-disturbed someone wouldn't let me go sightseeing was about to make my head crack open from disappointment.

"So Link…you mind if I take the last doughnut?" I heard Allen ask from the other side of the Golem's microphone, ripping me out of my deep abyss of despairing thoughts (mainly occupied silently shouting at the universe, "Why me?!").

"Just how many have you eaten?!"

I smiled at that, crossing my legs and looking up at the empty building.

"What's up, Klutz? You see something?" Kanda asked me, turning to look the same way I did. I simply shook my head, giving him a small glare for calling me 'klutz'.

"You hearing me, Beansprout?" He went on, talking through the Golem.

"It's Allen!"

"Quit stuffing yourself, it's almost time. You better not let the police snatch the prey from under our noses."

"It's not 'the prey' it's Phantom Thief G, Kanda." Allen answered, sounding like he was gnawing at something. "But roger that."

It was only a few minutes later, the window closest to Kanda and I shattered as the so-called Phantom Thief G jumped through it.

Kanda was much faster than I was, already having made it to where G was landing, the idiot not noticing Kanda's presence at all as he was too busy mocking the Inspector who was still in the Louvre building. The Japanese used the hilt of his katana to hit G on the back of his neck, sending him flying across the ground and losing the crown.

"Hey there, little thief." He mocked G with a grin, resting his sword on his shoulder. "Let's see your face, eh?"

"Don't damage the crown, Kanda!" I reminded him, Kanda simply answering with a 'yeah, whatever'.

Kanda went into a sprint, jumping and kicking the Phantom Thief G before he had even gotten off the ground, once again sending him flying through the air.

"Got him." Kanda stated bored, scratching his hair and grabbing G by the head of the mask.

"You did hold back right, Kanda?" I asked a little worried, finally catching up to the dark-haired exorcist.

"Hold it right there!"

I looked up to find the stupid Inspector and his stupid police officers come running toward us.

"It's you!" The Inspector yelled dramatically, pointing an accusing finger at us. "The pretty-boy and his friend from yesterday! What are you doing here?! G belongs to the police dammit!"

"What?!" I exclaimed angry. _So now I'm just 'pretty-boy's friend'?_ "Don't I deserve a nickname?!"

"We'll be taking the thief." Kanda interrupted my aggressive outbreak. "You can have the stolen goods."

In rage I kicked the crown across the ground – despite just having told Kanda not to damage it – making one of the police officers throw himself over in order to catch it.

"No, no, no! We'll be taking G as well!" Inspector Galmar yelled, making a motion for Kanda to hand him over.

"As if!" I snapped at him. "Finder's keepers, bub!"

"How dare you!" The Inspector hissed, walking over. "I'll arrest both of you as an accomplice, you got that?!"

Just there, I realized the police officer that caught the crown had turned and was walking away with it. _Crap! I need to pay more attention._ I was about to run after him, but the stupid Inspector caught me by the arm, his face telling me our little disagreement wasn't over yet.

"Where am I…?" The guy in the Phantom Thief G outfit mumbled, pure confusion written all over his face. Both Kanda and the Inspector looked surprised down at the fake G – the poor guy starting to panic and tugging at the clothes he was wearing. I took this as an opportunity to pull my hand free of the Inspector's grasp and start looking for G as a deafening laughter roared over the sleeping city. I followed the laughter with my eyes, finding the Phantom Thief G to be standing on top of the Louvre building with the crown in hand.

"So sorry to disappoint you, ladies and gentlemen! But capturing me is an impossibility!" G laughed, placing both of his arms in his sides.

"What's going on here?!" Kanda growled, still holding onto the former G who was now sobbing and saying it hurt all over.

"Well then, farewell!" The G waved teasingly with the crown, making the Inspector and his policemen gasp.

The Phantom Thief G only continued to laugh for a few more seconds before Allen appeared from behind, kicking him and sending him off in the opposite direction across the roof.

I took this as my own opportunity to start running toward the museum, unbuttoning and throwing off my coat. Placing both of my hands on the bricks of the building, I dug my fingers into the cracks, heaved myself up, and with difficulty started to climb the building. More than once, my feet ended up slipping against the building, and livid images of Annabella Morrison falling and ending her life in an ungraceful _splat_ against the ground flashed before me.

Somehow though, I made it to one of the large windows without splattering against the earth. Grunting, I heaved myself up by the windowsill and placed my elbow against the glass. I heard someone yelling out for the crown, just as I had shattered the window into thousands of small pieces of glass.

"Allen, what's wrong?!" I asked through my Golem, crawling through the shattered window and entering the Louvre building, trying to find a set of stairs that lead to the roof. _How the hell did they get up there so fast?_

"Bella…Link has…!"

"Link has what? What about him?!" I was guessing G must have taken over Link's body by now.

"From his title, I always thought he'd be more of the intellectual type…"

"Huh?" I mumbled, bursting through an 'exit' door and finally finding a set of stairs.

"I seem to remember he actually saved me once, back when Headquarters was invaded…"

"Um, I'm not quite sure I follow you?" I murmured, running up two steps at a time.

"Link seems to have been taken over by G…"

"Are you alright?" I burst out through another door, finally making it to the roof and looked confused after Allen and the possessed Inspector, only to conclude that they were on the complete other side of the building. _Dammit!_

"Yes, I'm fine." Allen answered my question. I stood completely still, listening as Allen had a conversation with the Phantom Thief. If I wasn't wrong, Allen would soon stab the G with his Crown Clown sword, tricking him into thinking he had been stabbed for real. By then he was gonna start screaming. He would probably still be screaming once he got back to his own body. Before that happened I needed to be at the highest – and then I might be able to hear where he was. _If I'm lucky at least._

I ran over to a high pillar, towering over the city and began to climb up. It took a little longer than I thought, meaning I barely made it before a distant wailing was heard throughout the city. If it weren't for the current situation, I would most likely have given the city beneath me an extra glance of wonderment. The way the lights from the streets and houses illuminated the dark night, gave the city, Paris, a whole new meaning to the word "beautiful". The snow falling from the sky had finally stopped, leaving behind a clear sky with small silver dots of stars, blinking and showing the way like fireflies.

"Where is it coming from…?" I mumbled, trying to sharpen my ears until my eyes finally fell to a not too distant orphanage from here. _That has got to be it._

"He ran away…" I heard Allen mumble through the Golem, followed by him and Kanda bickering over whose fault it was that they lost him.

"You guys…" I smirked, keeping my eyes locked with the orphanage, forcing my brain to remember the look of the place.

"I know where he is."

* * *

**A/N: Hey, how's everyone doing? So we are finally catching up to the canon storyline, which I, personally, am quite excited about. I think the events that happen after the Level 4 Akuma attack are very interesting. It'll be interesting to see how Bella handles everything. She promised herself to change some of the things that happen later on, and if she has the guts to do it, other things are bound to change too. Also, though we have finally caught up to the original storyline, everything will be approached at a reasonable pace. No need to rush anything.**


	15. White Demon

"Are you sure this is it, Bella?" Allen asked, looking up at the huge building – the Hurst Orphan Asylum. Stretching my arms, I yawned, thinking I definitely could have slept a few more hours this morning. I was dead tired – we did stay until past midnight to try and catch the Phantom Thief G.

"Yeah, this is where G's cries came from last night." I mumbled in response, petting Timcanpy as the Golem settled down on my shoulder. _It better be. _If I led these guys to the wrong orphanage, not only was Kanda going to kill me, but the whole mission could be put at jeopardize. Everything could turn out completely different. We might not even find Timothy at all. Or all of the lives in the orphanage could end up lost, because we didn't make it in time to protect them from the Akuma. Admittedly, thinking about all of this was really terrifying, and I was starting to wish Marie was on this mission instead of me. What if I messed everything up? What if my annoying presence ended up being the downfall of everything? The thought alone made me want to turn around and run all the way back to the Order, just so that I could hide in my room, under the bed, in shame and fear.

That's why, for the sake of the storyline, I was gonna try and take upon Marie's position as well as possible on this mission. I needed to make sure everything went according to the canon storyline, or else the whole plot could slip.

We all four walked up to the front door, Allen asking Link whether he was still angry about the wounds he received when G had possessed him – the Inspector simply glaring at Allen and answering with a grumpy 'no'. The white-haired boy barely got to open up the front door before a blue-haired kid was kicked and sent flying through the air, colliding heads with Allen. I jumped up on the railing in time as Allen, along with the kid, was thrown backwards, both of them landing with a loud bump on the cold ground. _Holy sweet moly I was right! This is the right place! Man, that really made my heart speed up…_

"Oh no! I used the moves papa taught me again!" The young woman responsible for kicking the blue-haired kid yelled embarrassed, followed by a few awe-struck comments from the orphanage kids.

"Are you okay?" I asked, putting on my fake surprised-look and sliding down the railing, landing in front of the blue-haired kid – also known as Timothy – although I knew he currently had possessed Allen's body.

"Ow…" Allen – or Timothy in Allen's body – mumbled. He got up from the ground and into a sitting position, taking himself to his bleeding forehead.

"Wait! This kid…" Kanda exclaimed at the sight of the big, blue jewel growing out of Timothy's forehead. I put the kid's head in my lab, wiping away some blood from his nose and pretending to be just as surprised as Kanda, the Japanese squatting down beside me to get a closer look of the kid.

Both Kanda and I jerked in surprise and turned around as Allen suddenly started to wail like a little child.

"Waaaah! Blood! I'm bleeding! I'm dying!"

"W-Walker!?" Link exclaimed, looking awkwardly at the crying Allen. I smirked. _That sure is something you don't see everyday._

"Klutz…" Kanda mumbled, both of us exchanging suspicious looks. _Sorry for what's to follow Timothy._

"Hey! You're pathetic crying over a little thing like that!" Link snapped, grabbing Allen by the collar of his uniform and shaking him. Allen, or Timothy in Allen's body – jerked in surprise, moving closer to Link to use his eyes as a mirror, his entire face turning horrified as he realized that he accidently possessed someone else.

"W-where's my body?!" He yelled, looking confused around.

"This one?" Kanda asked, holding forth Timothy's unconscious body by the shirt.

"Yeah, that's it…" Timothy in Allen's body sighed relieved, only to have his entire face turn into a horrified one by the next thing Kanda did, which was put the sharp end of his katana to Timothy's body's neck.

"So we meet again, mysterious thief G." Kanda had gone into full demon-mode by now, an eerie smirk and a dark aura surrounding him. "Now fess up. If you want this body back unharmed, that is."

* * *

"Timothy has been possessing people in order to steal?"

"How come I'm tied up too?" Allen mumbled annoyed from the floor where he had been tied up back-to-back with Timothy.

"It appears Timothy has the power to take control of other people's bodies at will." I explained, leaning back in the couch. I gave Kanda sitting beside me a glare, as he just left the whole damn explanation to me.

"Excuse me…are you serious…?" Mother Superior and the girl responsible for kicking Timothy and bumping into Kanda back at the police station – named Emilia – both asked in disbelief, though they had two different ways of showing it.

"Well…I know it's hard to believe…" I answered them awkwardly, forcing an apologetic smile onto my lips.

"But he admitted to it." Kanda finished my sentence in a cold voice.

"Admitted it?! You had a sword at his throat!" Emilia yelled both in anger and disbelief. "I don't know what the Black Order or exorcists are, but you can't do something like that to a child and not apologize!"

"If he'd listened, I wouldn't have had to." Kanda went on, looking utterly bored. I put a finger in my ear as Emilia went on with her yelling.

"Y-you think just because you're pretty you can get away with anything?!"

"He doesn't know what he's saying," I mumbled, removing my finger from my ear. "I apologize on his behalf."

"Emilia, you kicked his associate in the head, so you're no better." Mother superior corrected Emilia softly.

I smiled, asking her about the ball in Timothy's head, just to fill Kanda and Allen in.

"His father was a thief Inspector Galmar arrested." Mother Superior began to explain. Through the whole story telling, the only thing I could think of was the Sister that just left the room, probably to go call the Earl and tell him of our whereabouts. _Crap! Should I have gone after her? But then again, who knows what will happen if I change too much in this arc? Maybe Timothy won't end up joining us at all?_ I sat and had a mental debate with myself about whether I should go after her or not, while Kanda continued the explanation.

_No, I should just sit tight and follow everything as it goes. Remember, fill out Marie's position._

"You want to take Timothy back to the Black Order?"

Kanda shot me a look, telling me he was done explaining and it was my turn again. I sighed, leaning forth in the couch and putting on a stern expression.

"His powers may have come from the ball in his head." I explained, crossing my legs. "We are searching for something called 'Innocence'. We want to see whether or not the ball might be it. I promise he'll be safe. If it turns out it's not, we'll bring him back immediately –"

"Wait a minute!" Emilia interrupted me, making me slightly glare at her. _I wasn't done you know…_ "What if it is Innocence? Then what will you do with him?"

…_Man, this is awkward. How do I answer that without looking absolutely heartless?_

"We can't leave him here." Kanda answered Emilia's question after a few silent seconds. "The Black Order will take him in and make him an exorcist." _…Yeah. Thanks for making us look like horrible people, Kanda._

"No!" Timothy screamed, tugging at the ropes around him. "You can't decide for me! You're just like my dad! Treating me like a thing! I-I want to stay here! I won't leave even if you kill me!"

Somehow Timothy managed to run over to Mother Superior with Allen still attached to him.

"I don't care." Kanda stated coldly, grabbing out after the kid. "If we have to drag you –"

I smacked my hand over his mouth, stopping him from traumatizing the kid even more than he already had.

"You can't force him." Mother Superior stated softly, holding both Timothy and Allen against her chest, trying to comfort the wailing blue-haired boy.

"That's right! Have you no heart!?" Emilia yelled, glaring daggers at us.

"Maybe we should wait for Komui's orders…?" Allen mumbled from underneath the arms of Mother Superior.

"Look," I began, trying to sound as sweet and soft as I possibly could, which turned out to be ridiculously hard given the current situation. "I'm sorry for Kanda's harsh words, he doesn't know what he's saying. The thing is though, if Timothy really has Innocence, danger will start to –"

I stopped dead in my sentence, as the view from the other side of the windows suddenly turned completely black in a mere second.

"Huh? Outside…?" Emilia mumbled.

"It's still daytime isn't it?" Mother Superior asked. Both Kanda and I darted up from the couch, looking out one of the windows.

"Shit!" Kanda swore. "The town…?"

"It disappeared?"

"No, we're inside a barrier." Kanda corrected me.

"Akuma!" I exclaimed, just before half of the room we were currently in was suddenly blown up.

Kanda grabbed me in the last second, getting both of us out of the way before everything in here was destroyed. I caught a glimpse of Allen, activating his Innocence and shielding Timothy, Emilia and Mother Superior from the falling stones.

"Is that…and angel…?" I heard Mother Superior mumble after a few moments, and I followed her look to find someone – no – something, floating a few yards away from all of us, about to enter the ruined house. It was a white, child-like creature with a bloated stomach, two halo-like rings above its head and a pair of wings. The black star on its stomach would make it obvious to any exorcist that the creature was the exact opposite of an angel. _A Level 4. _This was my first encounter with a Level 4 Akuma, and one thing was for sure:

_It's terrifying._

_There is something about it that's just absolutely horrific._ Standing face to face with it like this, it felt as if my heart had stopped beating and my stomach had turned into ice. I clenched my fists together in an attempt to stop them from shaking, not daring to take my eyes off of the creature. I could feel a drop of sweat running down my temple, and I know my face must have gone pale by now.

"That's a…" I whispered, my voice breaking and stopping me from saying anything else. Time seemed to stand still as I just…stared at it. I couldn't do anything but stare.

"It's a Level 4." I heard Kanda finish my sentence, though his voice suddenly seemed so distant.

"I'm no angel." The Akuma replied Mother Superior's question, a wide grin spreading across its face, making a chill run down my spine and my heart beat faster and louder against my chest.

It was the sudden sound of sobbing and crying from the orphanage kids that seemed to rip me out of my frozen state and back to reality. _Shit!_

"The children…!" I heard Allen yell, the Level 4 shifting its eyes to the injured kids. I might not be a professional track-runner, but I had quick reflexes, which was why I ended up moving toward the kids before the Akuma did.

_It's fast!_

Kanda was fast too though, and he ended up just in time to defend the children, both of us kicking the Level 4 in the head and sending it flying across the floor. Allen swung his sword at it, the Akuma barely dodging his attack with a few inches.

_Third seal, first opening!_

Swinging my fans, a huge boulder was induced, sent flying and hitting the Akuma in the abdomen, crushing the Akuma against a wall.

"You have to run to the cellar, quickly!" I heard Link yelling, Mother Superior picking up one of the injured kids and shooing the rest down a staircase.

"Link!" Allen yelled, leaving the Akuma-fighting to Kanda and I. "I'll open a gate to the ark, so get everyone there!"

_It isn't gonna work Allen!_ I swore aloud in irritation, gripping my fans and charging for the Level 4 anyway. It had already managed to crush the boulder I made a few seconds ago, getting ready to attack us again.

Kanda swings his Mugen at it, the Akuma dodging it and jumping to the side. Kanda followed its quick movements, trying to slash the Level 4 with his sword repeatedly. Sometimes it did connect, but small hits didn't do much for the Level 4's skin, like it otherwise would on a Level 1 or 2 Akuma. So besides from making it difficult for me to keep up, no real damage was caused to the white weapon.

"Damn, it's so fast!" I yelled as I missed another hit with my fan on the Akuma.

"You're the one that's slow!" Kanda shouted in response, slicing the Level 4 on its back, though it didn't do anything serious to the damn thing.

"Shut up!" I snapped, the Samurai pissing me off so much I actually managed to hit the Akuma with another boulder.

"Should you really be fighting amongst yourselves?" The Level 4 mocked, raising its arms and making some weird Level 4-explosion occur, Kanda and I jumping back to avoid it and landing in front of Allen, Link, Timothy and Emilia.

"Damn, it's tough!" I hissed, finally getting a chance to catch my breath.

"Excuse me." Link mumbled, picking up Timothy and throwing Emilia over his shoulder, before jumping down the staircase. _Heh. Sometimes I forget how useful he can be._ Allen told Timcanpy to go after Link and help him and the others.

"The power of the musician…" The Level 4 grinned, making Kanda, Allen and I focus on the main threat in front of us, "your cursed left eye…"

"Even with an Akuma right in front of me my left eye isn't reacting." Allen mumbled, glaring at the Akuma. _It's because they put a barrier up._ The Level 4 started laughing, enforcing even more power and the muscles in its body.

"Did you really think we would let you hold those over us forever? Allen Walker!"

Kanda, Allen and I all jumped simultaneously toward the enemy, raising our weapons and getting ready to strike.

"We'll smash you!"

"I'll slaughter you!"

The Level 4 moved out of harm's way in the last second, all three exorcist weapons connecting with the ground with a loud crash, making a small crater appear.

* * *

Inspector Link made a safe landing on the ground, finally making the French woman stop screaming.

"Th-th-th-that jump was just…"

The Director pointedly ignored her, putting both Emilia and Timothy down and turning with a confused look to the still-standing Mother Superior and orphan kids.

"What are you doing? Hurry – to the cellar!"

"Director-sensei…?" Emilia mumbled puzzled.

An unnerving cracking noise was heard, as Mother Superior slowly tried to turn her head. The sort of cracking noise an old, breaking doll would make. Link, Timothy and Emilia all froze at the sight of the Mother – cracks and porcelain suddenly covering her face.

"Director-sensei…!"

* * *

The cringing sound of metal colliding with metal was heard as Kanda's Mugen sliced the shoulder on the Level 4. I groaned in pain, wiping away the warm blood on my cheek and getting ready to attack again. _Damn! It's so strong; I've never tried anything like it!_

Setting off, I rotated around to the backside of the Akuma, and with a tight grab, I jagged the hilt of my fan into the Level 4's temple, watching its eyes dilate in shock from the sudden attack. I used my other fan to enforce a large line of fire, jumping back and letting the flames lick themselves up the Akuma's body. The white creature quickly removed itself from the fire, avoiding any fatal injuries.

In rage it shot out after me. I barely dodged the hit myself, jumping over a ruined wall of bricks and using it as a shield from the attack.

Another clash was heard; meaning either Kanda or Allen managed to land a clean hit on it. I let myself fall down on all four, catching my breath for a few seconds before rising to my feet again, positioning myself in a fighting stance.

Allen was thrown across the room by the Level 4, Kanda taking this as an opportunity to attack the demon once more. I jumped over the wall of bricks, sending a vortex of wind toward the Akuma. It dodged it easy, kicking Kanda in the kidneys and sending him flying across the room right towards me. I yelped, only getting to stop before we both collided and hit the wall of broken bricks behind me.

"Ow…!" I groaned, trying to push the Japanese off of me. He quickly recovered, grabbing me and getting us out of the way, the Level 4 landing with a clenched fist on our previous spot, breaking and shattering the stones and bricks.

Kanda pushed me aside, quick to attack the Akuma again, Allen following right after him a few moments later. I cracked my neck, ignoring the agonizing pain from the movement and joined in on the battle.

The next thing that happened was so annoying I nearly refuse to believe it.

To dodge one of the Level 4's bullets I took a quick jump to the side. Landing, my feet connected with some sort of liquid – most likely blood – making me lose my balance and slip. The Akuma took this to its advantage, ignoring Allen and Kanda's attacks and flew right for me, pulling back its fist.

Before I could gain my balance and dodge it, the white creature threw its fist at me. The fist connected with my stomach, the strength from the attack sending me flying backwards and out the blown wall.

The first thing that hit the hard ground was my head, my surroundings going blurry from the impact. I groaned, feeling warm blood flowing from my head. The last thing I remembered before my conscience slipped away was Allen yelling for me…

* * *

**A/N: Hallew…? It's been a while. I apologize for the late update, but I was on vacation and, well, didn't bring my computer.**

**That aside however, I was just rereading some of the older chapters for the story, and boy, did I realize something: have any of you guys noticed how far Bella has come personality-wise? Considering she during her first mission didn't even dare to walk around in town alone, she has really come a long way. Now, she is the one to explain things and moves first when a potential threat is roaming over everyone. She used to be such a sissy, and though she (probably) still is, she has matured quite a bit. I'll definitely continue to let her personality develop and mature, because I find that half of the fun when reading and writing is to watch the characters grow. What do you guys think?**


	16. He Is Timothy Hearst

Gasping, I bolted upright, the sudden motion making my head scream and twist with pain.

"Damn…" I groaned, wincing in pain from the mere action of sitting up. I waited patiently for my blurred vision to adjust, using my sense of hearing in the meantime.

It sounded like the battle had moved outside now. The sounds of gunshots and metal scraping were really close at least.

Once my vision wasn't as blurry, I quickly got a look of Allen, Kanda and the Akuma, battling a little further away from where I was sitting.

"Nngh…Aaaaaooow!" I complained, as I practically forced myself to get up, picking up my fans on the way. I wobbled a bit from side to side, waiting for my body to adjust to the movements and the pain. Sighing in agony one last time, I pulled myself together and started to jog for Allen and Kanda.

"Bella, are you alright!?" Allen exclaimed worried as I finally made it up to the two of them.

"Define 'alright'." I mumbled, glaring at the Akuma.

"Well…can you stand…?"

I looked down at myself, grimacing at the sight of my own bruised and bloody legs, before looking back up at Allen a bit dumbfounded.

"Obviously."

"Well you're alive and kicking, so I suggest you both shut up and focus on killing the Akuma." Kanda snapped irritated. I turned around to give him a glare.

"Thanks Rapunzel. Your sweet words are heartwarming."

Kanda looked about ready to eat me, opening his mouth to snarl something, but got interrupted by a loud crash. We all three looked over toward the orphanage where the crash came from, as two Akuma came flying our way, battling one another.

I screamed as the larger one of the two was thrown across the ground toward me, jumping to the side and colliding with Allen who grabbed me by the arm and kept me from falling on my rear end.

"What the…?" Allen sweat dropped, staring after the two fighting Akuma in disbelief while heaving me up to stand.

"The Akuma are fighting amongst themselves…!" Kanda mumbled, looking puzzled after them.

_Yes!_ _Timothy finally managed to activate his Anti-Akuma weapon_. I grinned, looking at the battle in satisfaction as a pen suddenly dropped from the sky, hitting Allen's head.

"A fountain pen?" Allen murmured, grabbing the pen to inspect it as something much larger suddenly fell from the sky, landing on top of Allen who then fell forward into me, dragging both of us to the ground.

"Ow!" I whined, looking down to find an unconscious Timothy in my lab, Timcanpy holding on to the boy's shirt with his teeth.

"T-Timothy…!" Allen exclaimed, looking over my shoulder. Tim seemed to be communicating with Allen, telling him something.

"What is it Beansprout?!" Kanda yelled. Allen pointed toward the smaller one of the two Akuma.

"Th-that Akuma there! Tim is saying that Timothy has taken it over!"

"What?" Kanda exclaimed surprised. The Level 4 looked just as surprised over toward the battling set of Akuma.

"Nghh…my body's gone w…weir –" The bigger one of the two Akuma began to gain crackles and seemed to be turning into porcelain. The smaller one – the Akuma Timothy had possessed – threw a punch at it, destroying the Akuma. His fist was recoiled though, as a Level 3 met his fist with its own punch.

"Too bad." It grinned. "You may have transformed into an Anti-Akuma weapon, but you're still just a Level 2. And I'm a Level 3."

The Level 3 punched Timothy again, sending him off in the opposite direction.

"Timothy!" Allen exclaimed. I jumped in surprise as Timothy's body suddenly rose from my lab, running toward the Akuma that had been possessed by Timothy.

"Would ya try listenin' ta me already?!" ..._I guess Timothy's advisor, Tsukikami, possessed it._

"That accent…" Allen murmured confused. I couldn't help but grin a bit. _Just roll with it for the moment, okay Cotton ball?_

"Bella, move!" Allen suddenly yelled, grabbing me by the elbow and jumping out of the way as the Level 4 started shooting after us again.

"Looks like he is still lacking when it comes to power." It grinned with a final look at Akuma-Timothy, setting its aim at us. I gritted my teeth, glaring back at it. "Interesting Innocence he has, though. Hurry now Level 3. Kill the boy."

I felt my eyes widen as the Level 3 behind the Level 4 squatted down, getting ready to attack.

"I'll crush him at maximum power!" The Level 3 yelled, sprinting toward Timothy's body. _Oh no!_

"Run for it Timothy!" Allen exclaimed. _Dammit! That little idiot doesn't even realize what's going on!_

It seemed like Tsukikami was trying to explain something, the Akuma which Timothy had possessed yelling something about a Level 2 not beating a Level 3, as the Level 3 Akuma was getting closer. _Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!_

I let a few very unladylike words escape my lips, gripping my fans and then set into a sprint – not toward Timothy – but toward the Level 4.

"Foolish." It grinned at me, adjusting its aim right to me.

I didn't stop.

The distance between us became smaller.

"No, Bella don't!"

"Stop you stupid girl!"

The Level 4 pulled the trigger.

I took a last jump-off before letting my whole body land on the ground, dodging the bullets in the last possible second and sliding under the Level 4's legs. I quickly got up again, leaving the Akuma for the moment and making a turn toward the Level 3. _Where the hell is Link?! Isn't he the one who saves Timothy in the original storyline?_

Timothy's body became unconscious and fell to the ground, meaning Tsukikami left it. The Akuma Timothy had possessed became dust and got destroyed. _Get back in your body Timothy! _I increased my speed, watching as the Level 3 landed right beside Timothy's motionless body.

"If I get rid of his body, that should take care of the rest!" Pulling back its arm, the Akuma got ready to strike, clenching its fist.

"Now die! Innocence user!"

_Second opening: Third seal!_

Landing in front of Timothy I raised my arms in front of the Akuma, motioning my hands, and creating a large shield of stone from the ground in front of us, blocking the attack. The sound of metal against rock echoed as the Akuma landed its fist against the barrier. The entire ground shook as the Akuma kept throwing new punches at the shield, but the large piece of boulder continued to persistently stand tall and defensive. I grinned at the Level 3, the shield not cracking even the slightest as the Akuma carried on with its aggressive strikes.

Using the Second Opening with my Innocence, it allowed me to freely take advantage of the elements around me and control them. Unlike when I needed my weapon to create elemental attacks in the First Opening, my fans closed and attached themselves to my arms and wrists in the Second Opening – meaning all I needed was my hands. It made the attack extremely convenient as I could take anything that had to do with the elements and control or bend it, without being in need of a weapon. I was a bit jealous of Allen since this was how he fought when using his Edge End.

Of course there was a catch to it.

I winced, as an agonizing pain slowly started so spread from my fingers and up my arms. _Yeah, it's just like with Lenalee._ Because my synchronization rate was still only 69%, my body would begin to break if I used it for too long. Small pentagons were slowly starting to cover my skin; each single one of them felt like burning needles were piercing my flesh.

"M-Miss!" Timothy yelled, having returned to his body.

"You sure are persistent!" The Level 3 snarled, continuing to throw punches at the shield. _Damn, I need to start counterattacking before my body breaks! _I could already feel the pentagons had made it all the way to my neck and chin.

"You're gonna break! You're gonna die!" Timothy continued to yell hysterically, holding a tight grip around my waist.

"Oh! If I possess her, can I use my Innocence to help her?!" Timothy asked, talking to Tsukikami who I could neither see nor hear, so I continued to concentrate on the Akuma in front of me. _Do it now Bella! Counterattack!_

I made a motion with my right hand, letting the shield fall and getting ready to squash the damn thing with a boulder, going from defensive to offensive. I didn't make it however, before a sudden loud scream was heard.

_Akuma scream?!_

I put my hands to my ears, trying to keep the terrible sound out, pain pulsing through my ears and into my head. It felt like someone was trying to drill their way into my head, and it was making my mind clouded and disoriented. I fell to the ground, groaning in anguish and watching as Timothy lost conciseness from the pain. _The Akuma…I need to…_

My vision became blurry again. I glanced back up at the Level 3, disorientation all over my mind as the Akuma raised its fist. _I can't…_

The Level 3 threw its final punch…

…Only to have it stopped by someone else.

_Who…?_

The person was wearing completely scarlet clothes. _Oh! _It was those guys from Crow wasn't it?

"An exorcist? No," The Akuma looked wondering at the person blocking its attack. "I don't sense any Innocence."

"3, eh?" The person mumbled, the hand he used to stop the Level 3's attack suddenly turning and becoming a weapon that looked like something you would find on an Akuma. "Invoke."

In an odd blur, the Level 3 seemed to slowly be disappearing into the guy's arm.

"What!? My body?" The Akuma exclaimed, as its body was absorbed permanently. It happened so fast, in one moment the Akuma was there, and in the other moment it was being absorbed and was suddenly gone. I sat in silence, my head pounding and screaming with pain while watching the cloaked man warily.

The guy finally turned his head a bit, glancing at me quite uninterested. _It's those Third Exorcist guys…_ I didn't know why, but the look he was currently giving me was really getting on my nerves. It was as if he was just looking down on me, like I was some sort of vile cockroach.

I gritted my teeth in irritation, glaring back up at him, the thought of thanking him for basically saving mine and Timothy's life not even crossing my mind. _I don't like him._ That's what I ended up concluding as the guy finally broke eye contact, ending our staring contest.

I turned my back to him, picking the unconscious Timothy up in my arms while Timcanpy landed on top of my head. Looking over at Kanda and Allen, I realized they had started the fight with the Level 4 again. _I need to go help them. _But I wasn't really sure of how I could do that; I didn't want to just leave Timothy here alone with this weirdo. _And my body hurts so much._ I sighed, glancing down at the blue-haired boy in my arms. _I hope he's okay. I'll make sure to be really nice to him once we get back to the Order. I think I'll take him for a tour – then I can show him all of the good hiding spots to use when irritating Kanda. And I'll take him to Jerry so he can eat as much as he want, being a parasitic-type and all, that's most likely gonna make him happy._

I smiled softly at the boy, running a hand through his messy hair. _He kind of reminds me of my sister._ Come to think of it, he did have the same age as Lily. I think they would be able to get along really well…

A sudden scream of pain ripped me out of my thoughts and back to reality. I quickly looked up to find that the scream was coming from Allen, having pierced the Level 4 and himself with the Crown Clown sword. _Shit! What am I doing?! I should have stopped him!_

"Allen!" I yelled, not quite sure of what to do with myself.

"I don't…understand you…at all." The Level 4 choked out, widening its mouth to shoot and kill Allen. "Now die."

And then something in Allen changed.

I froze, watching with wide eyes as an eerie grin made it to Allen's lips. The boy twitched his head to the side, stretching a hand out and grabbing the Akuma by the head to get it closer to his face. And then he said something.

I couldn't hear it as it seemed like he was just mimicking the words, but if I remembered correctly from the manga, I think I had an idea from the way his lips moved.

_Good-mor-ning._

"Noah." The Level 4 whispered with wide eyes.

And then Kanda stabbed it with his katana right in the head. Allen had to move his head a bit to the side, not to get stabbed as well.

"Idiot Beansprout!" Kanda yelled. Both of the exorcists grabbed a tight hold of their swords, and then sliced them in two different directions, cutting the Akuma in pieces and finally ending it all. Blood was splattered everywhere, along with several limbs from the demon. Allen slid to the floor, looking up at Kanda.

"I've told you before the name's 'Allen'."

* * *

Both Allen and Kanda aggressively hit the door with their swords, the door not even budging from the impact.

"Ugh, it's not opening! How are we meant to get out of here?!" Kanda yelled irritated, putting Mugen back in its holster and leaning against the wall. I was leaning against the box that Allen was sitting on, petting Timcanpy and looking a bit uninterested the other way. _You're just gonna have to wait_~

"A sorcerous barrier cannot be penetrated from within." The guy from Crow explained, making me snort in irritation. _The oddball thinks he is so clever…_ "Wait for the science team to do their jobs. Assuming of course, that they are competent enough." _How dare you?! Those guys are hard-working people, do not speak ill of them! Or else I'll... I'll... punch you or something..._

Link had been shooting the guy suspicious looks ever since they met up – I think he might have figured out who the guy was, which made sense, as they were childhood friends. I, however, had been shooting Link suspicious looks, trying to figure out where on earth he was when he was supposed to help Timothy. He looked pretty beaten up - like the rest of us - but aside from that, nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary.

"Who are you anyway…?" Allen asked the Crow-guy dumbfounded. I rolled my eyes a bit, letting my still pounding head fall back to rest on top of the box.

"I wanna sleep~!" I whined, putting Tim on top of my eyes to try and block out the light. I quickly removed him again however, and lifted my head as I suddenly heard the door open.

"You see? It opens just fine, no problem at…" Inspector Galmar said, stopping in the entrance at the sight of all of us. "…all." _Thanks for joining us, mate._

"Why are you all covered in blood…?" He asked dumbfounded, looking down at Allen.

"Inspector, why are you…?" Allen mumbled baffled. _There you go. Patient people eventually receive all things._

* * *

_Ugh…this is so awkward…_

So I was currently sitting on the staircase in front of the Orphanage along with Allen, Link, Kanda and Inspector Galmar, a depressing, awkward silence spreading as the Inspector obviously didn't want us to take Timothy back to the Order. Kanda looked extremely annoyed with the dull atmosphere, Allen looked like he didn't know what to do with the situation, and Link – like usual – couldn't care less, sitting with a blank expression and reading a book. Personally, I was currently cringing because of the awkward silence, wondering whether I should leave or not, and using Tim as an excuse to have something to do, sitting and petting him.

"You know… back when we captured Timothy's father," Inspector Galmar began, making me look up from the floor, "I knew his kid was in there too…but I went bursting in there regardless. Emilia thought we should take in the boy ourselves, but…" I glanced back at Emilia standing by the doorway along with Timothy. "Every time I saw that forehead, I just felt so guilty…I was sure he resented me. So I ended up leaving him here. If only I hadn't gone bursting in guns blazing…"

The Inspector buried his head in his hands. "Do you have to take him away?" He looked up from his hands, determination raging in his eyes. "I promise, this time I will be there for the boy. I will protect Timothy from these Akuma myself!"

Emilia put her hand in front of her mouth, tears in her eyes. I looked up at Timothy, the boy seeming moved by the Inspector's words.

"Galmar, that's just…"

"Not happening." We all six finished blankly. The Director looked about ready to cry.

"You don't have to be so harsh about it…"

"Well look, we understand how you feel and all, but…" Allen began, smiling apologetic.

"Normal people fighting Akuma is just…" I continued his sentence awkwardly.

"You could stand by him all you like, but it wouldn't make any difference." Link finished blankly, returning to his book.

"Hell, go do your damn confessions in a church." Kanda snapped coldly.

"Hey by the way," Timothy looked to the Inspector, putting his hands behind his head. "Don't'cha wanna arrest me or anything, Galmar?"

"Don't address me like that…" The Inspector mumbled depressed. "And how am I supposed to arrest a little brat like you, anyway?! Ugh!"

"Well, I guess I better just leave, then." Timothy grinned.

"Huh?"

"Timothy?" Emilia exclaimed.

"Well, Director-sensei's getting old, and the other kids are still little, ya know? Can't have 'em getting caught up in another Akuma attack, can I?"

The boy turned to Allen and me, smiling at us. "So I guess I'll join up with you black-cloak guys after all." Timothy crossed his arms. "The name's Timothy Hearst, nine years old! I turn Akuma into weapons with my Innocence, Tsukikami! Pleasure to be working with ya, exorcists!"

I broke into a huge grin myself at the boy's words, the feeling of joy taking over, as I realized I made it through this mission without changing anything drastic. Shifting a bit to face him better, I made a motion with my hand as a sign for Timothy to get a little closer. Curiously, the boy took a few steps closer. I tugged a bit at the boy's shirt, making him bend down to be in the same eyelevel as me.

And then I placed a gentle kiss on his forehead, a gesture I used to do whenever my sister had done something to make me proud.

The boy quickly removed his head, taking a step back in surprise, a deep red color covering his face.

"W-w-w-why did…?" He stammered embarrassed.

I simply continued to grin at him.

"I'll take good care of you Timothy, I promise."

The boy's eyes widened a bit, before a huge, goofy smile appeared on his face. He stepped forward and then sat down beside me on the staircase, nearly smiling as bright as the sun.

"All right~" He raised his finger, his sweet smile suddenly turning into an unnerving smirk. "However~ don't you go thinking you're getting this sweet deal for free!"

_Oh no, I know what's coming next…_

* * *

That night, Komui was heard screaming when Timothy went to talk to him back at the Order.

And then later that night, Inspector Galmar was heard screaming Emilia's name.

Yeah… I didn't get much sleep that day.

* * *

**A/N: Another day, another chapter. Bella somehow made it through the mission without screwing too much up. Let's see how long she can keep it up.**


	17. Screw The Report!

The sudden loud boom echoing outside my window, seeming to shake the entire building pulled me out of my sleep in a yank of surprise. Heavy splattering sounds followed, hammering down on the roof like a hail of bullets and spitting on the window covered by the dark curtains like drumming fingernails.

Sleepy, I blinked my eyes open a few times before I glanced up at the dark-shadowed ceiling, wide awake and listening as another rumbling of thunder shook outside. In a slow movement, I raised my upper body, sitting up in my bed, making the warm sheet fall from my arms, leaving a feeling of expulsion behind on my bare skin.

A cold shiver ran through my body as I pushed back the white duvet with my bare legs, only wearing a pair of pajama shorts and a t-shirt, I walked over to the wooden chest of drawers. Rummaging around in the messy dresser, I finally pulled out my oversized sweatshirt, and with satisfaction I pulled it over my head.

I was too lazy to walk all the way over and turn the lights on, and instead, I dragged my uncovered feet across the floor, and pulled the dark curtains aside from the window, exposing the sight of the outside.

The sky was covered up by dark, gray dominating clouds, throwing down great sheets of pouring rain, small droplets of water leaving trails as they rolled down the cold glass. A small whisper of wind was tugging in the trees and the steady downpour sounded like dancing feet against the earth, whenever a drop of water hit the muddy ground. A jagged laser of silver light was brightening up the dark sky in an eerie way for a second, and cast white shadows into my room. I stood in silence, staring at a specific drop of rain sliding down the window, and I let my finger roll down the same path, as another growl of thunder raged in the sky.

I snuggled a little into the now warm sweatshirt, still gazing out at the sky, waiting for another lightning to strike as I felt an unsatisfied growl coming from my stomach.

"Need… Food…"

It had become a bit of a habit by now. Whenever I got back from a mission, the following two days I was practically starving in the middle of the night, so I always ended up going to Jerry's kitchen and ate some of the leftover desserts. It had come to the point where Jerry purposely left something sweet behind for me whenever I was back from a mission. I think I might be close to getting my well-earned title "the dessert thief".

I turned away from the window, walking across my room to the door and put my hand on the cold door handle. Swinging the door open and walking out of my room, I ended up bumping into someone as I entered the dark hallway.

I looked surprised up from the floor, my look being met by one emerald green eye, fiery red hair and a huge grin. I smiled back; about to greet Lavi, my mouth opening as the redhead suddenly shoved a spoon with something into my mouth, making me take a step back in astonishment from the action.

I took a moment to feel and taste whatever it was he just fed me, watching the exorcist with suspicious eyes. The consistence was cake-like and spongy, and the taste was sweet with a slight touch of cinnamon and…carrot? It tasted like there was some sort of sugary whipped cream on it.

"You like it?" Lavi asked, a huge beaming smile on his face. I swallowed, feeling my entire face lighten up and into a grin from the sweet taste, licking a spot on my lip where the spoon missed and smeared some cream on.

"It's really good!" I looked interested from Lavi to the spoon and then finally to the plate in his hand. The redhead thrust the plate out in front of me, making me stare at it with wide eyes in awe.

"It's a new recipe Jerry tried out the other day. He calls it carrot cake." Lavi grinned pleased, handing over the spoon and the plate with cake. I didn't hesitate one second, immediately digging the silver spoon into the cake and took another bite, humming in satisfaction.

"It's _so _delicious!"

"I thought you'd like it." Lavi laughed, leaning a shoulder against the wall. "I wasn't that tired, so I thought I'd go fetch a piece for ya, since you always get hungry the following days after you complete a mission."

"Thanks~!" I beamed, making Lavi's grin widen even more. A comfortable silence followed as I focused on stuffing myself quite ungracefully full of the delicious dessert. Once in a while I would take a quick look up from the plate to find Lavi simply leaning against the wall, watching me eat like an unattractive ogre with a soft smile on his features.

"So, I heard your mission went quite well." The Bookman finally said after having remained silent for a surprisingly long amount of time. "Apparently your rescue-Jiji-and-the-Finders-squad-mission turned into you guys saving a whole orphanage from Akuma and bringing back a new exorcist."

"That's right." I grinned proudly up at him, putting the empty plate on the floor in front of the door to my room. I would just turn it in to Jerry in the morning. Not really feeling like standing still at the moment, I made a motion for Lavi to follow, both of us beginning to wander aimlessly down the multiple hallways. "His name is Timothy, he's a real cutie. Have you met him yet?"

"Yup, I helped him find the cafeteria this morning. He's a feisty one alright." Lavi answered. We made a turn to the left, entering a new hallway. "It seems like he is the sort of kid that is up to anything mischievous. It'll definitely be fun having him around."

"Don't you dare put any weird ideas into his head and get him in trouble on his first week here." I said, giving the redhead a warning glance, a smile still plastered on my face though. The look currently on Lavi's face told me he was definitely up to something.

"I promise I won't do anything." Lavi reassured me, a teasing glint in his one eye. "_Yet_."

I made a dramatic groan, making the Bookman laugh.

"So hey, did you –" I began, but someone else interrupted me midsentence.

"Lenalee Lee! If you're awake then get out here!"

Both Lavi and I looked surprised away from each other, our eyes glancing down the long hallway to find Link standing in the middle of it, looking rather pissed. The door he was standing in front of opened, and Allen peaked his head out, a confused look on his face. Just like me, Allen was covered in layers upon layers of bandage, both of us probably looking like mummies. I swear, the Head Nurse spent half an hour holding a speech about how reckless we were, once she saw the aftermath of the Akuma attack.

"What are you doing Link?"

"Eh?" Lenalee said, also sticking her head out from the room, a concerned and soft look in her eyes. Her hair had grown a surprisingly amount ever since I got here; it was now nearly reaching her shoulders. I actually thought the haircut Lenalee had now was really cute and suited her, but she had told me multiple times that she wanted to grow it long again. "Don't tell me you've been waiting out here the whole time…?"

"Even I cannot be expected to do any work in a room with a lady in such an immodest state!" Double-dot hissed, a large book in his hand.

"Oh my…" I mumbled, Lavi and I exchanging grinning mischievous expressions. We tripped over to the trio, joining in on the conversation.

"Hey."

"Ah! Welcome back Bella." Lenalee exclaimed as she saw us, her worried face turning into a happy smile. I smiled back, giving her light wave. Link seemed to be gradually getting even more enraged, stomping his foot dramatically in the floor.

"If you obstruct my work like this again, I will be raising a formal complaint, Lenalee Lee!"

"It's true Lenalee." Allen mumbled, giving the exorcist girl a soft smile. "If it'd been Lavi, there's no telling what he would have done…"

"Hey! That's mean Allen." Lavi pouted; making a fake hurt face. I rolled my eyes again, shifting the weight to my left leg and watching the entertaining scene unfold before us.

"Oh don't worry. I can take care of myself." Lenalee reassured everybody, an innocent smile on her face.

"That is not the point I am trying to make!" Link snarled, the vein on his forehead growing even bigger.

"At any rate, could you stop shouting like that please…? My head hurts." Allen mumbled, the expression on Link's face making both Lavi and I start laughing, followed by the white-haired exorcist slamming the door in the Inspector's face.

"Oi! Open that door this instant, Walker! This is deliberate obstruction of my duties!" _Link is such a drama queen sometimes…_

"Eh~ whatever might you two be doing in there, hmm?" I said in a singsong voice, my grin widening and Lavi's laughs becoming louder.

"B-Bella…!" I heard Lenalee stutter embarrassed.

"Y-you know that's not true!" Allen yelled, a mix of embarrassment and irritation in his voice. I simply smirked.

"Allen and Lenalee sitting in a tree~" I sang, tripping up to Link's side for them to hear me more clearly. "K-I-S-S-I-N-G~"

"Bella…!" Both exorcists locked up behind the door yelled embarrassed in union. _I can so picture their red faces before me._ I slid my arm under Lavi's, linking our arms, the Bookman quickly catching on to the newly introduced song.

"Allen and Lenalee sitting in a tree~" We both sang simultaneously, tripping on and down the hallway, our arms linked like a pair of kids. "K-I-S-S-I-N-G~"

"Stop it you two!"

* * *

"Hmm? New exorcist?" Jiji asked nonchalantly, turning away from his current experiment to shoot a questioning look at Allen, Kanda and I. Both him and Rob (who was standing on the other side of the table full of chemistry equipment) looked really tired. Rob looked about ready to drop dead down on top of the table if not for the multiple dangerous-looking experiments happening on it at the moment.

"If you're looking for Timothy, he's right there." Jiji went on, pointing with his free hand to one of the tables, not far from us, where Timothy, General Klaud and Emilia were placed.

"Study is an important part of an exorcist's training." General Klaud stated proudly, crossing her arms in front of Timothy.

"My name is Emilia; I will be your personal tutor starting today." Emilia said with a book in hand, sounding as if this was their first time meeting one another. Timothy buried his head in his hands, sinking lower into his seat and looking as if someone was about to hit him.

"Dammit, Emilia what are you doing here?"

Not gonna lie, I pitied the kid. I absolutely _despised_ school with all of the assignments and homework we had daily. To me, it made no sense to use six to eight hours in school, listening to some grown-up blabbering on about pi and French grammar, only to go home and use _more_ hours doing your homework and ridiculous assignments. Where was the logic in that? I had a life, you know?

I ended up smiling a bit pitifully at the blue-haired exorcist-in-training, while inertly laughing demonically over _not_ being in his position right now. _We all have to go through it little man, nothing else to do but to suck it up._ Timothy quickly seemed to notice my presence, instantly straightening himself up and beaming at me in glee, a sudden relieved expression on his face.

"Bella! Save me!" He yelled desperately, a sudden plea in his brown eyes.

I gave him an apologetic smile, waving him off. "Sorry Timothy, I can't. I'm kinda busy right now."

"Eh!? You said you'd take care of me!" He shouted angry, pointing an accusing finger in my direction.

"Sure, but… studying _is_ important. Besides, General Klaud knows what she's doing." I ended up mumbling the last thing a bit fast, turning around to face Jiji with a wave.

"No, no, not Timothy…" Allen went on, a sudden despondent look in his eyes. "I mean the exorcist who came to our aid during the battle in the orphanage. I haven't seen him at all since then, and I don't know his name, so I can't finish this report…"

"He was with you guys, right? That punk in red." Kanda mumbled irritated, probably in a foul mood over our never-ending search for this guy.

I sighed, also beginning to feel a bit annoyed. I swear, we had been running around, asking people in the Order ever since breakfast, who and where the guy was. And by that, I meant Allen and Kanda had been asking the questions, Link had followed (as he had to watch Allen) and I had simply been tagging along (because I kind of had to) standing in the background as I already knew what his name was and who he was. At first it was kinda hilarious watching those two _actually_ cooperating, and watching their expressions turn more and more hopeless for each 'no' we got. But _now_ it had gotten extremely boring, and I wanted to leave – I had better things to do! _Should I tell them his name is Madarao? Ugh, no I shouldn't, but I swear, I am _this_ close to doing it._

"Oh, you mean the guy from the section chief's guard? I don't know his name either." Jiji answered, turning back to his experiment. Allen looked about ready to cry from the answer.

"Whaaaa?! Why not?!"

A black smoke suddenly erupted from the flask Jiji was holding, making me take a cautious step back and take cover behind Kanda.

"Besides, he's not an exorcist." Jiji went on, looking irritated from the sudden explosion. _He probably did something wrong. Don't feel bad Jiji, I once accidently put off the fire alarms at my school when doing an experiment… I failed chemistry later that year._ "He's one of the official guards assistant Supervisor Fey called from Central."

"Official guards…?" Kanda and Allen said surprised in union. They both seemed to be wondering for a moment, probably thinking back to the mission where Madarao defeated the Level 3. They both gave Jiji a skeptical look.

"Nah, that guy's no 'guard'."

"Whatever. I'm busy analyzing the bugs we retrieved back then! So beat it!" Jiji tried to wave us all off with an annoyed hand.

"He's no 'guard'!" Allen and Kanda continued, making me snort in amusement and making Jiji even more irritated.

"Ah shaddup already!"

I took a quick glance back, watching Link. The guy seemed completely lost in thought. I was pretty sure he had figured out that it was Madarao, and was probably trying to think of the main reason behind it now.

"If ya don't get outta my sight, I'm gonna cuddle ya! Don't underestimate the power of an old guy who's been up all night for days without taking a bath!" Jiji threatened, making me grimace. _Guess that's my clue to make a run for it._

"Welp~ you guys seem like you can handle this just fine! So I'll be taking my leave then!" I grinned, turning on my heels before Kanda could tackle me, and then ran toward the closest door.

"The hell you will!" I heard Kanda hiss from behind me, followed by Allen yelling something about the three of us being part of this mission together, and thus, must finish the report together. I looked back to find both exorcists having gone into a sprint and was right on my tail, one demanding I get back and the other yelling cusses and swearwords after me.

"You can't just skip the report Bella!"

"Get back here you stupid Klutz!"

"Ah! Thee hence evil spirits!" I screamed, making a motion as if trying to exercise the two demons after me.

* * *

**A/N: Things are picking up speed now. The appearance of the Third exorcists, Kanda's ark, and so on, is getting closer. I almost can't wait for it! Also, I apologize if updates takes a little longer, but as you probably all know, school can be hectic.**

**On a different note, I would really love it if more of you guys reviewed - a lot of you are ghost readers. Dropping off some feedback whether it be a short sentence saying if you loved it/hated it, a question or long constructive criticism, it really makes my day. Please let me know what you guys think :)**


	18. Broccoli-head, Bleeding-head and Airhead

"One more round, old man." Kanda grunted, wiping away some blood on his cheek.

I sighed, crossing my legs on the cold floor and placed my book in my lab, having abandoned trying to read long ago as the fight between Kanda and Bookman was much more interesting. Lavi sat down on the floor beside me, watching the fight in amusement.

"Ohohoho, come as you wish, Kanda. When it comes to the forms, I'm not ready to start losing to you young'ins just yet." Bookman taunted, having managed to get a hold of Kanda's hair tie and was currently swirling it around on his finger in mock.

"Bookman, you are incredible! Not giving a single inch to that demon Kanda!" One of the stand-in Finders yelled, lying on top of the rest of his comrades with several bruised limbs.

"It's time we determined once and for all who is the real ponytail master here." Bookman stated, raising his arms dramatically and getting up on one foot, as if doing some sort of secret ninja-art technique.

"I will defeat you." Kanda grunted.

"Rapunzel just doesn't know when to quit." I mumbled, resting my chin in my hand. "Bookman sure is a lot stronger than I thought, for him to keep up with Rapunzel like that…"

"That's Yu for ya." Lavi grinned. "As for the old panda, don't ever make the mistake of underestimating him Bella." The redhead sweat dropped, his face suddenly going pale. "I can't even begin to count how many times that panda knocked me out cold for saying the opposite."

I chuckled, returning the attention to my book, trying to block out the multiple yells and screams of encouragement to Bookman. Apparently people really wanted to see Kanda lose a battle for once. I sneaked a peak up from my book once in a while, watching Lavi as he with great enthusiasm cheered for both Kanda and Bookman. _Silly redheaded rabbit…_

"You are enjoying this far too much, you know." I finally said, looking up at him with a soft smile. The Bookman simply gave me a large grin in response, quickly turning his attention back to the fight between 'Bookman the Panda' and 'Kanda the Demon'. I let myself fall back to the floor, watching a few other fights behind me – now upside down – as three red-cloaked figures suddenly caught my attention on the other side of the training floor.

I quickly straightened myself up again, not tearing my eyes away from the cloaked figures even for a second, feeling Lavi's full attention on me now.

"What is it Bella…?" He mumbled, following my stare with a confused look, obviously not seeing anything out of the ordinary.

"I gotta go check something." I said quickly, getting up from the floor and started running to where Allen and Marie were training, leaving behind both my book and Lavi without a second thought. I got to the scene just in time to see Allen being flung across the air and into a marble pillar by the largest one of the Third Exorcists.

"Allen!" I exclaimed, passing Marie and running right for the now bleeding white-haired exorcist.

"W-what's with you… out of the blue…" Allen murmured shocked, falling to the floor and taking himself to his bleeding forehead, his Innocence activated and everything. I squatted down beside the boy, placing his head carefully in my lab. Marie was quick to catch up, squatting down beside us and looking worried at Allen through blind eyes.

"Did you hit your head? Hold still." He instructed, placing a hand on Allen's bleeding forehead. I felt my eyes dilate as Allen's left eye suddenly activated, and I immediately looked up to find the bigger one of the Third Exorcists to have activated his weapon, pointing it in our direction. I gave him a glare, my eyes _daring_ him to start shooting at us.

The second male in their group, having light green hair and two dots like Link on his forehead, seemed to find my glare entertaining, giving me a grin of mock in return. _I believe his name was Tokusa… if I remember correct._

"What are you doing, Goushi?" The female of the trio asked, her voice annoyingly calm considering the situation. Her appearance was all in all very small and petite; the girl was wearing all of her hair in two thick braids that along with her bands framed her face in an innocent way.

"Tch. It's a side effect." The large Third Exorcist named Goushi answered her. "It activated in reaction to the Innocence."

As if on cue, Link made an entrance, placing himself in-between the Third Exorcists and Allen, Marie and I. Timcanpy was flying by his side, seeming to be growling at the trio in front of us, almost as if he was a dog.

"What is the meaning of this, Goushi?" Link asked, his voice demanding and hard, having without a doubt taken on the same appearance as Lvellie. "Allen Walker is currently my responsibility. What justification do you people of Crow have for laying your hands upon him?"

"Crow?!" Allen repeated surprised, lifting his head and looking at the Third Exorcists in shock. I made sure to hold a firm grip around his shoulders in case he should faint or something. You could never be too sure in this place…

"Inspector Howard Link…" Goushi stated.

"Reverse your activation, Goushi." The short girl demanded. It was embarrassing but I honestly couldn't remember her name…

"Are you trying to earn yourself a lecture from Madarao on your first day here?" Tokusa asked nonchalantly, not really seeming to care either way. Goushi seemed to be concentrating, and then seconds after, his activated arm was deactivated, turning back to a normal hand. Allen looked very confused as his left eye deactivated too, making me give his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. _You'll know soon enough, Cotton ball, don't worry._

"What is all this about?" I suddenly heard Krory ask, and as I looked up, I founnd that Krory, Chaoji, Lavi and Bookman had finally managed to catch up.

"Oh my…" Chaoji mumbled in awe.

"What's up Allen?" Lavi grinned, squatting down in front of the white-haired exorcist. I noticed the redhead decided to bring my book along.

"You're bleeding, you know." Bookman stated matter of fact.

"You guys are slow." Allen said deadpanned, and I rolled my eyes with the same statement in mind.

"Who are these guys?" Lavi asked, looking away from Allen and up to the trio of Third Exorcists, curiosity shining from his green eye.

"Our apologies, Allen Walker." Tokusa began, not sounding the least bit sorry though. I felt my stare instantly harden and become a glare again. "As beings who have been converted into half-Akuma through biological generation, we do not react well to Innocence. I beg your forgiveness."

I felt Allen's body freeze in shock from Tokusa's words in my arms, his eyes widening in shock and puzzlement. A heavy silence followed as everybody present seemed to suck in what information they just got, nobody having a clue as to what to respond. I continued to glare at Tokusa, and the exorcist must have noticed my gaze at him, because he suddenly cocked his head questioning to the side, our eyes meeting once again.

"Well," I began, my voice unnaturally cold and harsh and very out of character for me, "what are you doing here then?"

"Pardon?" Tokusa asked, his voice full of fake confusion and mock.

"I said; what are you doing here then?" I repeated, my voice dripping with venom. I could feel how everyone with an exception for the Third exorcists were staring at me in shock, most likely because of my sudden unfamiliar harsh voice. I continued nonetheless. "If you don't cope well with Innocence, why is it _exactly_ you have chosen to appear here, the main headquarters of the Black Order, where all exorcists compatible with Innocence live?"

My question seemed to catch both Tokusa and his two childhood friends off guard, all three of them staring back at me with shocked expressions. Only for a short moment though as they all three quickly composed themselves, Tokusa clearing his throat to answer my question.

"We are simply acting under the Pope's orders."

_Don't you think I already know that Broccoli-head?_ I snorted in irritation, letting go of Allen and getting up from the floor, walking away from my friends and in the direction of the hallway behind the Third Exorcists.

"Bella, where are you going?!" Allen yelled after me, his voice full of shock and confusion.

"To have a word with a certain someone." I murmured under my breath, doubting that Allen even heard me. _And no, I don't mean Komui. I mean Renny Epstain, the chief of the North American Branch, the main person responsible for all of this._ I made sure to deliberately bump my shoulder hard against Tokusa's arm as I passed by, before I with long, steady steps disappeared into the hallway.

* * *

Don't even _think_ about asking why I was being this cold toward the Third Exorcists. Because honestly, I had no idea. It was as if in the moment I saw them attacking Allen with their fancy little Akuma-weapons and their annoying over-the-top attitude, I just developed this strong feeling close to what people would call 'hate'. And somewhere deep inside myself I knew what I was doing was wrong, the way I had already started to treat them was so very wrong. If anything, I should be feeling sorry for them, I should pity them for their fates. I _knew_ how they were all five gonna end up like. And it was terrible.

So then why did I dislike them this much already? Honestly, it frustrated me quite a bit. I wasn't the sort of person to just suddenly jump to conclusions about other people, and without a second thought or a proper impression, start disliking them. That had _never_ been how I did things. Heck, there were some of the Noah that I so happened to 'like' despite being an exorcist (though I hadn't officially met them yet). _Why then…?_

Was it because they were all half-converted Akuma? Dark matter and Innocence were natural enemies, so could that be the reason? Was it simply because I was an exorcist?

I shook my head in frustration, deciding I would try and turn this whole thing around.

If I could get them out of here quickly, they wouldn't end up hurting my friends in the future, and the Third Exorcists wouldn't die or join the Millennium Earl. End of story, everybody goes home happy.

Finally reaching Komui's office, I _tried _to throw the large double doors open, wanting to make one of those great entrances they always do in movies. However, fate deciding to ruin my moment of glory, the door handle got awkwardly stuck, and I ended up accidently bumping my head against the door.

Grunting in disappointment, I ended up fumbling around with the handle for a few seconds, before finally getting the door open and marching right in, cutting Bak off in his sentence.

"What exactly is in that mental mind of yours?!" I snarled, placing myself beside the couch Renny Epstain was currently sitting in. Yes, I _did_ just spend about five minutes coming up with that one sentence, and now that I said it aloud, I realized it didn't sound as cool as I had hoped.

All three Branch chiefs however, looked utterly shocked by my sudden appearance, their mouths hanging open in disbelief.

"B-Bella…!" Komui exclaimed, nothing but shock and confusion on his face.

"Hi Bak." I mumbled, shooting the Chinese chief a quick glance before straightening myself in front of Renny, the woman simply shooting me a blank look in return.

"Honestly Komui, I thought you had better control of the exorcists here." Renny looked away from me and over to Komui, the dark-haired chief seeming at a loss for words at the moment. Komui shot me a warning, almost pleading look.

"Please leave, Bella."

"No." I answered, stubbornly crossing my arms like a five year old. "I have a few things I'd like to discuss with the North American Branch chief."

Komui's eyebrow twitched. Bak jerked slightly in shock. Renny simply leaned back in the couch, a mocking smirk spreading across her red-painted lips as if she was "allowing" me to talk.

"What exactly are you _thinking_ bringing half-converted Akuma to the Order?" I snapped at her. Great, _now_ I felt my heartbeat speeding up at the current situation I had gotten myself in to. _What am I doing here again?_ I took a nervous breath, hoping my angry scowl was still on my face. "One of your Third Exorcists just attacked another exorcist, you know."

"Who?"

It was neither Renny, Komui nor Bak asking the question, but Madarao, him and his sister having been completely silent and almost unnoticed upon till now. I gave him a bit of a confused look. As our eyes met I felt my expression soften slightly. He _was_ the one who not only saved my life, but Timothy's as well. Come to think of it, I never actually thanked the guy for that. I had a staring contest, decided I didn't like him and then left. Quite simply. _Way to go Bella, you're now sort of in huge debt to the guy._

Quickly emptying my thoughts, I assumed he was asking which one of the Third Exorcists attacked Allen.

"The big guy, Goushi." I finally answered him, Madarao simply giving me an almost invisible nod, his face telling me he was most likely making a mental note to scold Goushi later for that. Madarao kind of striked me as the guy who tended to be short on words, as well as his sister Tewaku, who had remained quiet the whole time.

"Bella!" I suddenly heard someone hiss my name from behind, and as I turned around, I found that Lavi was slowly, and quite awkwardly, entering the room, his hands raised in defense. He looked half confused, half nervous around the room, mostly eyeing Komui and I.

"Lavi, please escort Bella out of the room." Komui told the redhead, his order hard and clear. I dug my heels stubbornly into the ground, refusing to take one step as Lavi came over and grabbed my elbow in an attempt to drag me out of here.

"Come on, Bella."

"No." I said again, pulling my arm out of his grasp and taking a step back, looking from Lavi to Renny to Komui. "I still have some things I'd like to discuss."

Lavi gave me a hard look, his one eye suddenly stripped from any emotion. His expression was telling me he had gone into his 'Bookman-mode', meaning he didn't really give a care about what I wanted or thought. He wanted to get out of here because he was not supposed to get involved in stuff like this. As an exorcist he had been given a direct order from Komui to escort me out. So that was _exactly _what he would do. I couldn't help but jump in surprise at the look he was currently giving me, my stomach knotting itself together.

Lavi took two long steps toward me, his green eye uncaring. He then grabbed me by the waist and threw me over his shoulder, making an embarrassing yelp escape my throat.

"Sorry about the interruption." The Bookman said blankly, turning on his heels and then walked out of the room, holding a firm grip around my waist and hip as to not drop me. I felt the warmth rise in my cheeks, and I made sure to stare at the ground to save myself from the embarrassment of locking eyes with anyone in the room as the door slammed shut behind us.

* * *

Jiji laughed so loud I thought my eardrums might explode, throwing an arm around my shoulder.

"So wait, how did those three chiefs look like when you burst in and interrupted their meeting?" He asked, making me shrug my shoulder in response.

"They looked pretty surprised…" I mumbled, my eyes locked with the table in front of me. Once we had left Komui's office, Lavi didn't put me down until we had reached the science division. Our faces must have drawn attention, because a lot of the scientists (meaning Jiji, Cash, Johnny and Reever) came over immediately after that, asking questions of what had happened.

Jiji laughed again, slamming his fist into the table out of pure entertainment. Aside from a small smile tugging on Cash's large lips, Jiji seemed to be the only one that found my story funny. Johnny and Reever were sitting by the table with us, both of them wearing an expression of worry. Lavi had remained silent through the whole story, sitting on a chair further away from the rest of us, half of his back facing us. I couldn't see his face, because his red hair was covering most of it, but something told me he wasn't exactly thrilled.

"What happened after that?" Reever asked, his voice cautious.

"Lavi came and… uh… escorted me out." I answered, fumbling around with the right words.

"I had to _drag_ you out." Lavi corrected me, his voice neutral, but with a slight etch, still looking the other way. I made a small nod, my eyes quickly falling to the table again. _He is angry. _I wasn't really sure why though, I mean it's not like I dragged him with me and told him to be my right-hand-man. There really wasn't anything for him to be mad about; he was not the one in trouble. Still, I really didn't like that he was angry with me. It felt like my whole stomach had frozen to ice and someone was constantly thrusting a needle through my heart. And I didn't like needles by the way.

To be honest I was really embarrassed and ashamed of what I did. I deliberately interrupted a meeting with three head chiefs, started yelling about removing the Third Exorcists, and then disobeyed a direct order from Komui. Wait, scratch that, frankly I didn't give a damn about having interrupted their meeting (I actually felt like a badass when doing that). What I was angry with myself about was actually treating the Third Exorcists like thrash and demanding that they leave again. What was wrong with me?! I was a horrible human being. The first thing those guys hear when arriving here was that they were not welcome. That was really terrible of me. I, of all people, knew for a fact how difficult it could be; having to adjust to new environments, and it didn't exactly make it easier when some random girl started yelling at you to leave.

That was one thing I regretted doing. The other thing was disobeying an order from Komui. Once again, it was not the fact that I ignored his order or talked back, because I had done that multiple times before, it was the fact that I did it in front of Renny. I put Komui in a really bad light in front of her, and made it seem like he had no control over any of the exorcists here. It didn't matter that I did all of that in front of Bak, that guy was pretty down to earth and laidback when it came to stuff like that. I think I even talked back to him a few times the second time we met, when he had decided to pay the headquarters a visit. But talking back and ignoring orders in front of _Renny_? I must have lost some brain cells to do something like that. She was probably gonna go tell Central how disqualified Komui was for controlling something as important as the headquarters of the Black Order. What was I thinking again? Oh right, I wasn't thinking _at all_.

"Bella, they're gonna write that down in your file, you know." Johnny stated softly, making me look the other way. _That's right. I completely forgot they have files on all of us. I wonder what it says in mine? "Random teenager popping up out of nowhere. She likes to interrupt important meetings and talk back to the chief."_

Lavi suddenly got up from his chair, and without a word, marched out of the science division. I quickly untangled myself from Jiji's arm, getting up from the chair and then ran after him.

The redhead was surprisingly fast, and he managed to walk all the way to the library before I entered the room after him, finally catching up. Lavi marched right over to one of the bookshelves, his back facing me as he looked through the different reading materials. I sighed, walking a bit closer.

"Look, I'm sorry if I put you in an uncomfortable position back there. I wasn't really thinking…"

Lavi was standing still now, seeming to be listening, but his back was still facing me. I pouted at his childish way of handling conflicts, shifting the weight to my other leg and placing my hands behind my back. I then continued, my voice barely a whisper.

"I realize that disobeying Komui and getting angry with the Third Exorcists was wrong… and I feel really bad about it…"

Lavi finally turned around to face me, a hopeless and despondent look on his face.

"_That's _what you feel bad about?"

I twitched my head to the side in confusion at his question, making the redhead sigh and roll his one eye at me.

"You should start worrying about your own reputation with Central. Like Johnny said, your little stunt will be written down in your file." Lavi walked away from the bookcase, placing himself in front of me. I gave him a confused are-you-serious-look, making the Bookman smile despondent down at me.

Honestly, the fact that Central might not look at me as the "perfect exorcist", and Lvellie might not like me very much (I had met him once, and I swear, bolts of lightning was shot when our eyes met) but I didn't really give a care. I didn't really care that they had a file on me, where they wrote down whenever I made a mistake or was being disobedient. I mean it was not like my parents were here to scold and lecture me whenever I did something wrong. I didn't have anyone here that would get disappointed if my file wasn't representable. Not my mom, not my dad, not my sister and not my grandparents. Not my family. I didn't have anyone here to teach me what was right and wrong, I had to figure that out by myself. I was on my own here…

"I don't care what it says in my file…" I finally murmured, making Lavi sigh once more. He took his bandana off, and then proceeded to slide it over my head, placing it over my eyes so I couldn't see anything. I wasn't really sure whether to remove it or smile, so I ended up standing still, my mind seeming to be elsewhere at the moment.

"Of course you don't." The Bookman said in a hopeless tone, still holding on to the bandana with his finger. "Well, I guess if you don't care," by the sound of it, I think he was grinning now. "Guess _I'll_ have to make sure your file isn't full of bad things then."

I smiled, putting my hand on Lavi's wrist to raise it, peaking up from under the large bandana across my head. As our eyes met, my smile turned into a cheeky smirk.

"If anyone needs their files taken care of, it has got to be you."

* * *

**A/N: Aaaaaaand I've been hit by writer's block… it's horrific. I haven't been able to write **_**anything**_**, which is why this chapter was updated so much later than I had expected. I apologize for that, and for any possible ooc-ness that might be in this chapter (you guys are free to tell me if that's the case, by the way).**


	19. Extra I: Zombie Apocalypse at the Order?

You know those amazing work-free days you sometimes happen to be lucky enough to get? Yeah, I _used_ to have those too. Now I had to spend my precious free time, helping the science division move their remaining junk from the old headquarters. _That's right_. Apparently those idiots still had a few things left in the old Order - the one that was destroyed by the Level 4 Akuma - that they needed moved to the new Order. And guess what? I was something that the _whole Order_ (I might be exaggerating a _tad_) had to help out doing; (all) exorcists, (all) scientists, (most) Finders, (some) nurses and so on. Of course, some people had to stay back at the Order, and some of the exorcists were on missions right now, meaning the Third Exorcists avoided it, as well as some of the Generals (Socalo was the only General _not_ on a mission, so he was forced to help out too).

So yeah, now I was stuck in this old, creepy Order, not allowed to leave before we finished moving the remaining things.

All of a sudden the torture of doing homework didn't seem so bad.

* * *

"Allen!" I yelled across the desk, trying to wake up the half-sleeping white-haired boy. He shrugged a little in the chair, making the stack of books and some kind of reddish elixir on top, he was leaning against, slowly start to tilt.

"Allen, I think you should wake up now." I mumbled, already seeing the entire scenario happening of the tower of books tumbling over.

"D-dummy! Wake up Allen!" Reever yelled across the room, his hands completely full of boxes filled up with all different kinds of junk.

But it was already too late.

The tower of books tumbled over because of Allen's weight. It fell to the ground with a loud bump, followed by Allen, the weird elixir in the fragile glass-bottle shattered in thousands of pieces as it hit the ground. A red fog flew up from the broken glass, making Allen completely disappear in the odd-looking mist. I took a step back, not wanting to get caught up by the fog, or even touched by it, just in case it actually might be poisonous or something.

"AH!" Allen jumped out from the mist, almost stumbling into Link, who in the last second took a step to the left, dodging the confused Allen.

"Are you alright Allen?" I asked a little startled, but immediately regret saying that in the moment I got a better look of him. I stared at Allen in total confusion, or rather, stared at his white hair, which had just during seconds grown all the way down to his waist. Timcanpy flew up beside Allen seconds later, also suddenly having grown out hair. _This all seems a little too familiar…_

"Not again…" Reever mumbled, face-palming. _This is not funny!_ I tried to convince myself, holding both of my hands in front of my mouth in an attempt to suppress my own laughter. _He almost looks like a girl!_

"Pffft…What _is_ that?" I asked in between my stifled giggles.

"This is the hair tonic Komui gave Bak for his birthday." Johnny said, picking up a piece of the shattered glass to examine it. "Don't worry, it'll go back to normal soon enough."

I walked over to pat Allen encouraging on the back, hearing Johnny mumble something in the sense of "He's the fourth one." _Wait, fourth one?_

"I said to be careful…" Reever mumbled as I turned around to have a look of the scenery.

"Oh, geez…"

On one of the science department's old couches were Bookman, Lavi and Kanda sitting.

"My hair turned into bunny ears…" Bookman sobbed – and for good reason. Instead of his usual question mark shaped hair, he now had two huge bunny ears growing out of his head.

"You stupid science guys make too much weird shit!" Lavi yelled, pointing an accusing finger toward Reever, Johnny and Rob – only he had been turned into a little kid! And it wasn't just Lavi, but Kanda too. Their clothes were way too big for both of them now and they looked to be no more than 8-9 years old.

"Admit it, you don't work at all, you just fool around!" Kanda snarled in rage, pointing a sword at the scientists. Marie and Lenalee were standing behind the couch, conversing about what to do with Lavi and Kanda's clothes; Marie suggesting they wear some of Bookman's old clothes.

"Come on, let's get back to packing!" Reever nervously dismissed the accusations, turning around to go back and pack. I grinned widely at the scene in front of me, walking over in front of Lavi and Kanda and leaning down to match their eye-level.

"Aw~ you guys look so cute!" I hummed, earning two pair of annoyed glares.

"Shut up you stupid Klutz!" Kanda snarled, pointing his sword at me. This was usually where I would start either apologizing or run away… but not this time.

"You know, you're not scary at all as a child," I laughed, seeing the vein on Kanda's forehead grow bigger, as a new nickname struck me. "Yu-chan."

"WHAT!? Take that back right now!" Kanda was literally about to tackle me, but Marie quickly grabbed him from behind, keeping him from doing so with ease.

"I don't wanna look like this forever, Bella ~!" Lavi whined, jumping down from the couch and running over to glomp me. I patted him comforting on the head, turning my own head away in an attempt to hide my blushing cheeks. _God, he looks adorable._

"Hey, you're as tall as me now!" Timothy exclaimed excited, running over and pulling both Lavi and Kanda over to measure their heights, which was to my own amusement almost the same.

"I'm taller than you!" Allen mocked, bending down in his knees while measuring, but was even so, still the tallest among them. Lavi pouted, placing both of his arms behind his head, while Kanda looked very close to exploding from rage. _Well this is going to be interesting._

* * *

"You should have woken me, Link." Allen complained while carrying a box, Timcanpy flying by his side looking more than happy, having his hair tied in two pigtails (our dear Miranda decided to help the two damsels in distress out by tying their hair up).

"That is not my job." Link answered blankly. _I swear, those two act like an old married couple sometimes. _I rolled my eyes at the two, before looking at one of the most hilarious scenes ever seen – meaning Lavi and Kanda in Bookman's old clothes and helping one another carry a box. I was about to chuckle as I suddenly caught a glimpse of Miranda, tripping over something, most likely her own feet, and falling forward, dropping a big box filled with (dangerous) junk over Lenalee and a still sobbing Bookman.

"Not again!"

"Uh, you two…" I mumbled, afraid to move near the fog surrounding Lenalee and Bookman.

"Meow?" Lenalee tilted her head in confusion, fallowed by another meow from Bookman. _Oh god…_

"They are talking like cats!"

"Who made this!?"

"That's creepy!"

"I don't want to help any longer…" I mumbled, exchanging a disturbed glance with Timothy beside me.

"Aieeee! I'm sorry! I'll become a cat too, to make up for it!" Miranda suddenly panicked, grabbing the bottle to pour some of the cat-talk-elixir on herself, but got stopped by Allen from behind, Timcanpy grabbing the bottle from her and Marie trying to calm her down.

"Gramps is creepy, but Lenalee is cute, so why not call it even! Better yet, pour some of that stuff on Bella!" Lavi laughed, followed by a smack to the back of his head by Kanda.

"Shit, if Komui finds out about this, we're in trouble." Kanda growled.

"Meow."

"He'll kill us for sure, no questions asked!" Johnny yelled nervously, putting his hands on Lenalee's shoulders to lead her away from the remains of the elixir and Allen gently taking her hand, saying he was sick of moving the science department. Reever still tried to figure out who made the elixir, yelling and waving around with the empty bottle.

"Hey, how about we make a run for it while we're still alive?" Lavi asked me, pulling in the sleeve of my shirt to get my attention.

"I second that." Timothy mumbled from my other side.

"I do have a bad feeling about this…" I sighed, looking from one small boy to the other, weighting our chances of escaping without getting caught _and_ punished for it. "Moving the science department is a pain in the ass."

"You haven't got anything actually dangerous, have you?" Allen asked Reever, shooting him a skeptical look. Reever raised his hands in defense.

"Hey, it's just us after all. We wouldn't make anything unthinkable."

"Not 'anything unthinkable' my ass." I groaned in disbelief.

"This is pretty unthinkable as it is." Kanda snarled.

"Nothing as dangerous as Komui's stuff." Johnny laughed nervously.

"Is that stuff here?" Allen asked, getting a bit too close to Johnny's face for it not to look intimidating.

"Huh? No, well, he has hidden all the really dangerous stuff in the storage…" Johnny was cut off in his sentence when all of the light in the room suddenly went off, making nothing but darkness surround us. I squealed in astonishment from the sudden blackout, grabbing onto Timothy's hand and Lavi's shirt. A small murmur filled the old Order, right before a dark, eerie chuckle silenced everybody.

"What's that?" Allen asked, sounding rather nervous.

"A voice…" Lavi answered pretty obviously.

"A g-g-ghost?" Miranda stuttered nervously, her and Lenalee holding onto each other like a scared, old, married couple. _Ghost?_ The word seemed to have a negative effect on me, making a cold chill run down my spine, and in response, I snaked my arms around Timothy's head, hugging him tightly in comfort to my chest.

"No way." Allen and Lavi answered in union, completely rejecting the thought of a ghost.

"Bella…I can't…breathe!" Timothy choked in between my arms, trying to push me away.

"Sorry…" I whispered, quickly letting go of the kid.

"You don't _really_ believe in ghosts, do you?" Lavi asked me in an annoying laid-back voice and disbelieving expression. I simply snorted in response, ignoring his question.

"It's gotta be Komui's idea of a joke." Kanda said irritated matter of fact. _Then it's a really bad joke…_

"Wait, this is weird," Marie suddenly exclaimed, placing one of his hands on his headphones in concentration. "I can't tell where the voice is coming from."

"It's definitely Komui!" One of the scientists yelled annoyed, followed by other scientists agreeing and yelling out for Komui to stop playing around and get back to work. Marie shushed them, seeming to be paying attention to something else.

"I hear something else. It's getting closer."

Everybody seemed to freeze as the door a little longer down the room suddenly, slowly, creaked open, and I held my breath in response, getting ready to run the opposite way if it really was a ghost… Only wasn't…

"Head nurse?" Allen exclaimed, rather surprised. _I almost would have preferred the ghost…_

I tilted my head slightly in confusion as the Head nurse got closer, something seemed to be a bit off about her… I didn't get to say anything though, as the Head nurse suddenly, completely out of the blue, sank her teeth in Allen's arm – literally biting him.

…

"…What?" Was the only thing Allen was able to say in the current situation, his face showing nothing else but pure confusion.

"What's going on nurse?!" One of the scientists exclaimed, grabbing the Head nurse from behind and getting her off of Allen. The white-haired boy still seemed to be frozen in shock.

"Is she mad? Is the head Nurse mad?" Lavi asked dumbfounded.

"Did you not get released from the infirmary or something, sprout?" Kanda mumbled, also seeming to be in pure shock.

"I did…" Was all Allen managed to answer, probably still trying to recover mentally from the shock.

"But she bit you! She doesn't normally just bite people!"

"What have you done, Allen?" Reever asked, looking utterly confused.

"Not you too, Reever!"

The Head nurse tried to get free from the scientists grasp, while growling and drooling like a wild dog, and I automatically took a step back, pushing Timothy behind me and pulling Lavi with me (mainly to have some sort of protection in front of me). _Why is she acting so weird?_

"Listen to you," Miranda mumbled worried, getting closer to the Head nurse to get a better look of her, "do you have a cold, nurse?"

In less than a second the head nurse had suddenly sunk her teeth in the side of Miranda's neck.

"AH!"

"What are you doing, Head Nurse?!"

All of the blood seemed to leave Miranda's head immediately, and in pure shock she fell back, Marie grabbing her before she hits the floor. A bunch of scientists ran over and grabbed the Nurse, trying to restrain her from biting any more people, while the nurse continued to act like a wild beast.

"Why are you so upset, Nurse!?"

"Let's just calm down and talk this over, okay?!"

At this point I had taken at least ten feet away from the crazy nurse, having placed myself in front of Timothy and using Lavi as a human-shield as protection for myself – Lavi was too much in shock to even notice.

"Are you alright, Miranda?!" I yelled, trying and hoping to overhear the yelling scientists and loud-growling Head nurse. Miranda, to my relief, seemed to hear me, nodding in response and mumbling something that sounded like, "That startled me." Marie still tried to make sure she was all right, while Lenalee was sitting and meowing in a worried voice. All of a sudden though – and I don't know what it was – something in Miranda's face changed into something much more… dark. She abruptly turned her head to look straight into Marie's eyes, Marie's expression turning from worried to a speculating gaze.

"Miranda? Your heartbeats a little strange –"

Marie was cut off in midsentence as Miranda suddenly bit him. My mouth practically fell to the floor in astonishment, everybody else seeming to have the same reaction, accept from Marie whose face was flushing a very deep red color.

"Miranda?!" Both Lavi, Timothy and I exclaimed at the same time, all of us staring at the scene in utter shock and disbelief. _Is she trying to give him a hickey? This is a fine day for all of the Miranda and Marie fans!_

"Hey, Marie!" Kanda yelled, trying to keep the blind Austrian from fainting – he looked to be very close to. And then it happened again. Marie's red-blushing face suddenly went from confusion and disbelief to dark and almost…dead. The big Austrian suddenly grabbed Kanda by the wrist, pulling him off the ground and into the air. I tilted my head in confusion, the hairs on the back of my neck beginning to stand out. _Something is wrong…_

"Hey? What're you doing?" Kanda growled irritated, glaring daggers at his big friend - and not getting an answer from him. Then his expression turned from annoyed to suspicious. "Marie…?"

"Sir, what…?" I heard Reever mumble from somewhere in the crowd, making me turn to look at him and whoever he was talking to. And the scenario made my heart drop to the ground. Almost everybody that was perfectly fine a few moments ago were now suddenly covered in bite marks and acting just like the Head nurse. And then it hit me, the way they looked almost dead, growl, drool and the way they walk – _they acted like zombies._ At this point I had been pushed up against the wall along with the few others that weren't acting so strange.

"Don't you think this is a little weird?" Allen mumbled, holding an arm out to keep Johnny behind him.

"What's up with you guys?" Reever asked the odd-acting Order-members who were with every second getting closer to our little survivor group.

"Look at the door." Link said, jerking his head in the direction of the door. I, and everybody else not acting like a zombie, looked toward the door, only to find all of the other Order-members walking in, also acting weird and zombie-like.

"Everyone…?"

The next thing happened way too fast. Kanda warned us that none of them were in their right minds, and as a result, kicked Marie in the face to get loose. This seemed to trigger something in the rest of the "zombies" as they all suddenly jumped at us, exposing their teeth and ready to bit any one of us. I acted on pure impulse from the attack, activating my Innocence and enforcing a high stone pillar underneath me, jumping up on it before I grabbed who was closest, that being Timothy and Lavi. Lenalee seemed to have gotten the same idea, grabbing Kanda and Bookman. We both managed to get up in the air, right before our zombie friends attacked the few survivors, literally burying them because of the difference in numbers.

"You guys?!" I screamed, tightening my grip around Lavi and Timothy not to loose them, and in response they both held tighter onto my arms. Lenalee meowed worried, holding onto Kanda, while Bookman was holding onto her back.

"Did they get them?" Kanda asked, trying to look for any survivors in the chaos beneath us. A white light suddenly shone from underneath the zombies and to my relief, they were all pushed away and I saw Allen, having activated his Crown Clown and using it to shield everybody.

"Thank god, you're alright!" I sighed relieved landing beside Allen and putting Lavi and Timothy down.

"Sorry, I tried not to make it hurt much!" Allen apologized to our zombie friends that he just attacked – only they got up terrifyingly fast and seem fine.

"Let's get out of here!"

And with that command said, I grabbed the collar of Timothy's shirt and pushed the still apologizing Allen toward the door to follow everybody else out of here – the zombies right behind us.

"They're after us!" Rob yelled as we ran out and down one of the dark hallways.

"I did not sign up for this!" I screamed, glaring daggers at Reever.

_It's official._

_I miss my homework._

* * *

**A/N: Like most of you guys probably already guessed, this chapter as well as the next is written and based on the "Destruction of the black order" arc. I really like those chapters in the canon storyline, and so, I decided to write a few chapters based on them. I thought a few chapters that are fun and light is important before moving on in the storyline, because we all know shit is gonna go down very soon.**

**These two chapters aren't exactly a part of the main story, so think of them as a sort of extra/side chapters. I have obviously changed some things as it otherwise wouldn't make sense, but I hope you guys will enjoy it nonetheless. Personally, I had a blast writing this chapter because everything is so sudden and random :D**


	20. Extra II: One Heck of a Night

After a painfully long flee from zombies, we somehow managed to shake them off and hide in an old, what I was going to assume was, storage room. At this point it was only Lavi, Allen, Kanda, Lenalee, Timothy, Bookman, Reever, Johnny, Rob, Link, Timcanpy and me that hadn't gone zombie yet.

"What the hell is up with them!?" Kanda hissed. He was currently standing on Bookman's shoulders to be able to look out the window, Allen standing beside him, Lavi hanging off Allen's arm to watch, and then me having Timothy in my arms – all five of us staring out the window, watching our zombie friends.

"There are swarms of them." Lavi murmured.

"And they're fast." Allen went on.

"I wanna go back!" I whined, a little too loud, making all four boys shush me.

"How dare you shush me?! I'm either taller or older than you guys – that makes me the leader!" I hissed, glaring at all four boys. They either glared back (Kanda) or just sweat dropped, returning their attention to the zombies outside the window.

Behind us, all three scientists were sitting in a line along with Lenalee. Link was standing up, going on about the possibility of this being another attack. Eventually, Kanda, Allen, Lavi, Timothy and I got tired of watching the zombies, and we all turned around to slide down the wall and sit on the floor. At this point, the muscles in my legs had started to ache from exhaustion.

"Be careful. If they bite you, you'll get infected and turn into one of them." I suddenly heard a familiar voice say, coming from Kanda's other side. _Komui?_

"Infected?" Kanda repeated, glaring daggers at the ceiling.

"How do you know that…?" Allen asked.

"Because it's a virus I created."

…

"Get him!" Reever suddenly yelled, everybody acting simultaneously and attacking Komui. Allen pinned his arms behind his back, Lavi grabbed a leg, Kanda kicked him, Bookman sat on him, Johnny and Rob got a rope ready, I made sure to hit him over the head before Timcanpy started gnawing on his hair and Timothy stood with arms in his side, laughing.

* * *

"You think I did this? I'd never do such a thing." Komui said, putting his glasses back on his nose.

Yeah, we were currently all chained up, each of us having a bump on our heads from being knocked out – with an exception of Link and Lenalee of course. A funny little detail we didn't exactly notice was that Komui apparently was sitting with his Komurin ex – the damn thing currently holding a freaking gun at our heads.

"I see what you think of me! Fine!" Komui yelled dramatically, turning around with an offended pout. "Fire, Komurin ex!"

"Yes sir."

"You already fired!" Kanda yelled in rage. Yep, he already fired a long time ago, meaning there were currently a bunch of holes in the wall behind us – all of us barely escaping being hit.

"This is exactly why we suspected you!" Reever snapped irritated at Komui. I simply slid even further down the wall, preparing for another attempt at surviving Komurin ex's crazy shooting. Lenalee turned around to face the crazy Komurin ex, mixed feelings of panic and plead in her eyes as she started meowing at it (probably saying something like 'let them go').

"Meow…?" Komui repeated his sister's words confused. _Oh crap…_

Both Komui and his damn robot suddenly turned around, aiming the gun back toward us, mainly targeting Allen and Reever though (luckily...). "What sort of perverted game did you involve my Lenalee in?!" He asked in a dark voice. "This is an act of God."

"There's a complicated explanation." Reever answered hurriedly, looking a bit nervous from the Supervisor to the pointed gun at his forehead. "More importantly, what's this about infection?!"

"I should be asking you." Komui placed his wire-framed glasses on his nose, speaking in a bit more serious tone now. "You're the ones who took it and hit it from me." _Komui seriously shouldn't be allowed to experiment…_

"Huh?" Rob mumbled.

"Us…?"

"There have been so many things we've taken from you…" Reever mumbled deadpanned. Komui pouted offended like a little kid, turning his head away.

"You remember back when we were working late a bunch of nights in a row."

"Oh! That!" Reever exclaimed, finally seeming to have a grasp of what we're dealing with. "Komuvitamin D!"

"It was supposed to blow away tiredness so you could work." Rob explained to the rest of us who had absolutely no idea of what was going on. Johnny nodded, taking over.

"But instead it was so strong it blew away all reason as well."

"The stupid overtime zombie virus…" Reever mumbled dramatically.

"Zombies?" I repeated sarcastic, raising an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"That's so cool!" Timothy beamed beside me, making me roll my eyes. _Boys and their obsession with zombies…_

"The virus can be stopped with antibiotics." Komui explained, making a fake-thinking expression. "We made one to stop the first attack before it spread back then. Which means…"

"Gentlemen and ladies!" Komui yelled, turning around and raising a dramatic fist in the air. "We have to find the antibiotics so we can resume moving!"

"What?!"

"You mean you don't know where it is?!"

"I vote for we leave this place and go back to the Order. Those that has been bit can just stay here and gnaw at each other." I mumbled annoyed, Lavi and Timothy raising their hands in favor of my voting.

Double-dot seemed about ready to report this whole thing and turn Komui in to Lvellie. Allen looked like he was about to faint from worry. _Wait, didn't the Head Nurse bite him? Oh well, guess I'm not going near the Cotton ball any time soon…_

* * *

I watched interested as Link started to write down the current events unfolding before us, the Inspector so focused on turning Komui over to Central that he wasn't noticing my stare.

"_I, Howard Link, highly recommend Supervisor Komui be strictly punish –"_

Before Link could finish his writing, Komurin ex took a large bite of the report journal, his long teeth sinking into the papers like a dog eating a bone. _Evidence destroyed…_

"My notebook…!" Link hissed in shock, watching as Komurin ex gnawed and then swallowed the book.

"Pfft…!" The director shot me a warning glare.

…

"AHAHAHA!" The loud roar of laughter escaped my throat before I could think it over. I swung both arms over my abdomen and bended over, continuing to laugh loudly.

Everybody else quickly turned around, frightened shock all over their faces, before shushing me.

"Oi! Shut up, Klutz! Do you _want_ the zombies to know our location?!" Kanda hissed. Lavi put his small hand over my mouth in an attempt to stifle down the laughter, while everybody turned back to look out the window, watching the zombies on the floor below us.

"They're all over the place." Reever whispered, watching all of them with caution. "Looks like we really are the only ones left alive."

"They're not dead." Komui corrected him.

"How are we supposed to find the antibiotics anyway, Supervisor?"

"How?" Komui put a finger to his chin, thinking. "Sixth sense or something, I guess?"

"'Or something?'" Reever repeated in irritation.

"Or like ESP or what a veteran detective relies on as a last resort when they're stumped or something?"

"So you're talking intuition?" Reever concludeed in a defeated tone.

"Huh? You mean you haven't got a clue?!" Lavi yelled annoyed. "Nothing?!"

"I sure wish I did…"

"Are you kidding me?!" I snapped at the Supervisor, controlling the urge not to attack him with my weapon.

"I'm seriously gonna kill you." Kanda snarled, jumping forth to attack Komui, but Reever quickly grabbed him from behind, barely restraining him.

"You don't know how much I want to say 'go ahead', but just wait a minute, Kanda."

"Anyway," Komui pouted, crossing his arms stubbornly. "This is all your fault Reever, for not keeping a better eye on my Komuvitamin D after you'd confiscated it. Don't blame me."

"Y-you're shameless." Reever let go of Kanda and charged for Komui himself, but got stopped by Rob grabbing him. I grinned, watching in amusement. "You have no idea what we've been through!"

"Sir, stop! Calm down." Rob sweat dropped.

"Are we gonna die here?" Timothy asked dramatically, turning to look at me. I waved at his question, squatting down in front of the blue-haired kid.

"Nah, we'll find the damn antibiotics eventually. No worries." I looked past Timothy, watching Allen with cautious and skeptic eyes, the exorcist standing on the other side of our spying window. The air around him seemed to gradually become darker, and his eyes had become an odd color.

I made a motion with my finger for Timothy to step a little closer, the kid obeying without any hassle and placed his head close to mine. I pointed a discrete finger in the direction of Allen, and Timothy followed it with his eyes as I started to talk in a whisper.

"Just stay away from the Cotton ball, he seems about ready to go zombie on us."

Timothy gulped, watching Allen with wide eyes, before turning back to look at me, his face serious and his voice low and quiet.

"Should we throw him out the window to avoid getting bitten?"

I thought the idea over for a minute, patting my chin with my index finger in thought. Once making up my mind, I turned back to Timothy, both of us exchanging dark grinning expressions.

"You distract him and I push him."

We both moved simultaneously, getting up from the floor and turning to face Allen, both of us smiling evilly. But just as we were about to carry out our master plan of survival, a dark shadow from the other side of the window caught my attention.

"Time for bad kids to die!"

I squealed in shock as General Socalo jumped through the window and attacked Allen with his weapon, Madness. Allen _barely_ managed to block it by activating his Innocence and using his sword.

"I won't let you get away, my prey." Socalo said in a singsong voice, swirling Madness around.

Everyone present and alive seemed to freeze and go pale as they saw the General. Admittedly, I was about ready to pass out. _Why did it have to be him of all people?!_

To put it simply… I was scared of Socalo. He intimidated me. And that was really saying something, considering I was the one that usually made Kanda go into his "Demon mode" (usually).

Unlike General Tiedoll and General Klaud, Socalo seemed to all in all have very little regard of his fellow exorcists. I had been under his command during a mission once, and I'm telling you, it was not fun. He had this disturbingly sadistic way of fighting and seemed to be downright enjoying it when killing. He was like some reckless untamed beast whose cage had been unlocked when battling, going completely berserk. I swear, I was covered in blood when we finally returned to the Order, not my own, but the blood of the Akuma Socalo had ruthlessly slaughtered. There was even a few times where the General nearly hit me, followed by him stating I was "in the way".

On our way back from the mission, Miranda (who was also on the mission) and I decided we hoped none of us would _ever_ have to go on a mission with the crazy General again. I spend the following days complaining about Socalo being crazy to the scientists that had the time to listen. Reever told me later that Socalo _apparently_ was a death row inmate from Mexico, and was spared in exchange for joining the Order. I think a lot of my questions regarding Socalo were answered right then and there. Even so, I spend the following night crying myself to sleep.

"Even the General got infected?!" Lavi shouted in disbelief.

Everybody turned around as Bookman was heard crying out a _meow_ and Link yelling. I felt my face paling further at the sight of Krory sinking his teeth in Link's neck and Jiji biting Bookman.

"Link!"

"Gramps!"

_I wanna go home…_

"Bastard…" Link groaned, falling to the ground. "It's my duty to report the Supervisor… for… this… mess…"

"I wonder if a good whack will make him forget." Komui mumbled darkly, pulling out a hammer and holding it over Link's head.

"Supervisor that's…!" Reever said, him and Rob trying to stop Komui from hitting the poor Director with a large hammer.

"That's a bit inhumane."

I took a few steps toward the scientists, leaving Allen behind to fight General Socalo by himself.

"Go, Allen!" I cheered, grabbing Komui's hammer and throwing it out the window, making said Supervisor whine in complaint.

"B-Bella, come help!" Allen yelled in desperation, trying to block another one of Socalo's hits.

"But you're doing so well…" I answered him nervously, waving his comment off.

"Hiya, hiya, hiya! Die, die, die!" The General shouted, slashing out after Allen. I cringed, turning the other way and pretended to look at something very interesting on the ceiling.

"A-A-A-Allen's a gonner!" Johnny yelled dramatically.

"He really is a monster without his mask…"

I noticed Kanda out of the corner of my eye, having drawn Mugen and was fighting off Krory, while Lavi was holding off Jiji and some of the other bitten scientists with his hammer. Whistling, I turned my attention to a pile of very interesting-looking dust.

"Fascinating…" I mumbled, inspecting it.

"Bella, come help!"

"Alright, already!" I shouted, grabbing my weapon and activating them. I threw one fan after a bitten scientist, the Anti-Akuma weapon hitting him on the head from behind and knocking him out cold.

"…That was easy." I mumbled, catching my weapon again.

"W-we're gonna die!" I heard Rob yell.

"Do something, Komurin ex!" Komui shouted, and I turned just in time to see Komurin ex throw a herd of missiles _everywhere_, three of them heading right for Allen.

"Missi– " Allen began, but got cut off as they hit him and blew up like firework. The explosion seemed to make a domino effect, making _all_ of the other missiles blow up at the same time, making the entire floor explode.

"Dammit Komui!"

* * *

Allen groaned loudly, finally regaining his consciousness, and making Lavi, Kanda and Johnny shush him. I pulled my legs up to my chest and buried my head in my knees, feeling Timcanpy settle down on my head.

"You sure were out cold, Allen. It was hard to carry you like this." I heard Lavi say. I started making a loud, high-pitched whine.

"I can't believe I lost him!"

"Shhhh!" Is what I got in response, just like Allen, from the three boys.

"Will you stop shushing me?!" I hissed, turning my head to glare at them. Allen cocked his head to the side in confusion.

"Lost who?"

"Timothy!" I whined, returning to bury my head in my knees and make the high-pitched whine.

"She has been acting like that the past twenty minutes." Lavi explained to Allen. I felt someone scramble over to my side, and as I peeked up from under my hair, I found it to be Johnny, putting a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"Don't worry, Bella. I'm sure he'll be fine."

"Really?"

"Yeah!" Johnny said enthusiastically. "He's with Lenalee, Rob, the Chief and…" the scientist's voice started to fade a little. "…Supervisor… Komui…"

We all ended up sweat dropping at the last person Johnny mentioned.

"…He's doomed."

"What exactly happened?" Allen asked after a few minutes of silence, looking confused around in our new hiding place, a storage room.

"We all got separated in the explosion." Johnny explained. "It's just the six of us now."

"Six?" Allen repeated confused, seeming to be mentally counting the people present at the moment. Johnny, Lavi, Kanda and I all pointed a little further down the room to where Komurin ex was sitting, curled up like a ball and tears running down his eyes.

"I couldn't save my master…" He sobbed, leaning against a shelf. "I'm just an ordinary man."

"Oh." Allen murmured deadpanned.

"Yeah. At least I'm not crying like that guy." I mumbled, defending my own dignity.

_KNOCK! KNOCK!_

All of us (with an exception for Komurin ex) jumped in surprise from the sudden knock, coming from the door we were currently seated in front of. We all five quickly got to our feet and jumped to the other side of the room, getting ready to battle if needed.

"Allen? Bella?" Another knock was heard. "Johnny? Lavi? Kanda? Are you guys in there?"

"Reever…?" I whispered, exchanging a confused glance with the four boys beside me.

"It's us. Open the door…"

"They found us…" Allen murmured. I noticed Komurin ex having joined up behind us. "Which is good, but…"

Exorcists, scientist, robot and golem went from being curious and relieved to suddenly feeling doubtful and skeptical. Our little odd group of survivors all eyed the door in suspicion, a tense silence falling over us.

"Bad feelings have a habit of being right…"

A long silence was followed as we all tried to figure out what to do with the current situation, as Komurin ex suddenly spoke up.

"They might be infected. It would be dangerous to open the door."

"…"

Johnny and I stood in silence, as Allen, Lavi and Kanda started pushing Komurin ex toward the door against his free will. They almost made it halfway, before the robot turned his head around, tears falling from his eyes and snot falling from his nose.

"What are you doing?!"

"Go open it." All three boys answered him simply, continuing to push him toward the door.

"Noooo!" Komurin ex wailed, trying to wiggle free from their grasps. "That's terrible! We're all scared. If this is a horror movie, we'd be killed as soon as we open the door!"

I rolled my eyes, stating the obvious. "You're a robot. It's not like you'll get infected."

"No worries, no worries." Lavi smiled in encouragement.

"This isn't a horror movie." Kanda mumbled deadpanned.

"It hurts us to ask you this, ex." Allen went on in a gentle voice.

"No! I won't do it!"

"Listen to me ex."

"No!"

"Komurin," I said, as an idea suddenly struck me. The robot looked past Allen to see me, sniffing a few times. I put on a worried expression, hoping the damn thing was foolish enough to believe it. "What if Komui is on the other side? What if he is injured and needs your help? Don't you want to help your…uh… master?"

That seemed to be all the robot needed to hear. Without further ado, Komurin ex turned around and darted for the door, swinging the doors open dramatically.

"Master~!"

"Komurin ex~!"

I swear; roses, rainbows and pink glitter seemed to grow and stain the scene as Komui and Komurin ex finally reunited, embracing one another in a tear-filled hug. I let out a breath of relief I didn't know I was holding, watching in glee as everyone we were split up with before came back, only one person was missing…

"Where is Rob?" I asked Timothy and Reever as they came over, panting as if they had been running.

"The Supervisor sacrificed him to save his own skin!" Reever shouted in disbelief, glaring at Komui. I felt my mouth fall open in shock. _He did what?!_

"Some sacrifices are necessary." Komui answered simply, placing his glasses back on his nose.

Lenalee looked like she was trying to say something, meowing wildly at Allen and tugging at his wrist, the white-haired exorcist turning to look at Reever in confusion.

"Oh, that's right," Komui said, pointing with his thumb toward the door, "just to give you a heads up, we were being followed by the zombies before, so they'll probably arrive here shortly."

And with that said, the only exit out of this place was blocked as scientists, exorcists, nurses and whatnot, scrambled through it and headed for us.

…

"Dammit Komui!" I yelled again, giving Komui a blaming glare.

"Why is that _my_ fault?!" The Supervisor whineed.

"Everything is your fault!"

"What are we gonna do!?" Lavi shouted, jumping back along with everyone else, taking cover in the other end of the room. The ones wielding Innocence, activated it, getting ready to fight them off.

"Did you find the antibiotics?!" Kanda asked, hitting one of the scientists with the hilt of his sword.

"No, did you?" Komui asked dumbfounded.

"You think I would have asked, if _we_ had found it?!" The mini-samurai shouted angry, knocking out another one of the zombies. I knocked Chaoji out with my fan, as he got a bit too close, cringing and hoping it didn't hurt too badly.

"Maybe we should– ARGH!" I barely managed to jump out of the way as General Socalo appeared and thres his weapon after me. Socalo laughed insanely as Madness came back for him, making the blood leave my face instantly. _Great. On the mission he just _accidently_ almost killed me a few times, but now, he is _deliberately_ trying to kill me._ I thrust my hand out dramatically, pointing at the General.

"I always knew something was fishy about that guy!" I ended up laughing a bit after, turning to look at the others behind me. "Get it? Because he looks like a fish."

…

"Not now, Bella." Reever answered a few seconds after an awkward silence, sweat dropping. I huffed in offence, turning back to the fight, and blew a piece of disobeying hair out of my face. _Where is Lavi? He would have laughed._ I started looking a bit confused after the redheaded exorcist, only to find him getting attacked by Bookman and bitten on the head.

…_Well, I guess we had fun hanging out together as long as it lasted. May he rest in piece(s)._

The sound of glass falling to the ground and Johnny gasping made me turn around surprised to see what was going on.

"This is…!" Johnny exclaimed, picking up a bottle of pills and inspecting it.

"It's the antibiotics for the Komuvitamin D!"

"Eh…?" Allen mumbled disbelieving, and everybody seemed to stop what they were currently doing to look at the bottle with pills. _Is he serious?_

"Yes! With the antibiotics we have the upper hand!" Komui yelled in excitement and victory, pointing his finger in the direction of the infected Order members. "Go, Komurin ex!"

"Yes sir!"

And with that said, General Sokalo decided to throw his weapon at the robot, ruining it and blowing it up permanently, the robot ceasing to exist. Let's all take a moment in silence for Komurin ex, the biggest sissy of a robot I had ever met (and the only).

"Now he's just being an ass." I murmured, dropping my head in defeat like everyone else, a heavy silence falling over the room.

"Now what…?"

The zombies didn't stop however, resuming to attack us and try to bite us.

"We'll figure something out!" Allen shouted, being the first one to react and using his Crown Belt to keep the zombies at a decent distance. "We just need a little more time!"

I nodded in agreement, resuming to try and knock out the zombies along with Kanda while Allen kept them away from the scientists and Timothy, as an idea suddenly hit me. I stopped my attacks abruptly, turning to the blue-haired kid.

"Timothy…!" I exclaimed, feeling my entire face brighten up at the realization. The younger exorcist gave me a surprised look of confusion, waiting for me to go on.

"Do you think it would be possible to posses each one of them and then force them to eat a pill?"

Timothy's entire face turned into a huge grin, and nodding, he ran up to me, excitement shining from his brown eyes. "Definitely! Just take care of my body while I'm gone and don't let any of those guys bite me."

I gave him a reassuring grin. "Promise. It's all up to you now, little man."

I grabbed a hold of Timothy's body as it went numb, meaning Timothy's spirit had left it. Everybody watched curiously as Socalo suddenly seemed to stop his crazy attacks on us, and I'm guessing Timothy must have chosen to posses him first. _Good choice._

Johnny popped the lid off the bottle and pulled a white pill out, throwing it to Timothy in Socalo's body, who caught it with ease. We all watched as he then proceeded to swallow the pill, leave Sokalo's body (who became unconscious and fell to the floor) and then possessed the next person.

We continued to do that for I don't know how long, until the pills in the bottle were close to gone and we had a huge pile of unconscious scientists, exorcists, nurses, finders and so on lying in front of us. Let's just say it was one hell of a pain in the ass having to carry all of those guys back to the Order. Komui eventually ended up calling the Asian Branch for some backup, as we otherwise would have spent weeks moving people in-between the old and new headquarters. Luckily, only a few hours passed by after we had started moving the Order members before they gradually started waking up, looking very bewildered. Timothy ended up falling asleep on an old couch long before we had finished moving people back to headquarters, as the kid had gone way over his own limit regarding his Innocence, we all agreed to let him sleep. As for me, I made myself a promise that day.

Never, will I _ever_ again in my life agree to help move junk from the science department.

* * *

**A/N: So updates will be a little irregular for a while, as school is being a total bitch at the moment. But we're getting **_**really **_**close to the Kanda/Alma arc, so I promise to at least try and post the next chapter as soon as possible :)**


	21. Impossible Decisions

I ran a hand through my wet hair, removing the remaining shampoo and let it rinse into the steaming hot water of the bath. Sighing, I placed my arms on the edge of the tub, leaning against it and resting my head on my folded arms. The tranquil sound of sloshing water, and the hot, misty damp surfacing the room in a heavy air was making my eyes hazy and droopy, and so, I let my eyes fall shut.

_It's gonna happen soon._

I knew it. I could feel it.

…

…Okay, that was total bullshit. I couldn't 'feel' it – I was just sort of guessing the event must be closing in, seeing as it had been a few weeks since the Third Exorcists arrived.

Ever since the Third Exorcists were transferred to the Order, my head had been squirming with possible solutions to the upcoming problem. I had been lying awake for hours during the night, letting one plan run and unfold after another. Unfortunately, my many plans and thoughts had never been very successful, meaning they had after careful inspection been tossed aside and forgotten.

The soon-to-happen-future scared me. It frightened me because I didn't know what to do about it. And I was afraid I wouldn't figure something out in time.

To put it simply; a certain Rapunzel-in-his-ultimate-form would stab Allen and have the Fourteenth awakened, while Lavi would get kidnapped and tortured by the Noah… and possibly become Sheril's new boy toy.

Both scenarios were highly worrying, not to mention disturbing.

Here is where the _real_ problem came in:

I wouldn't be able to save both of them.

Well… not at the same time, at least. I would have to save one of them in 'the moment' and then help the other person later. And I didn't know in which order to save the two.

Let's say I chose to go and save Allen's ass first. I would have to face the problem and go straight for the core – in this case meaning the Noah of Wisdom; Wisely. Wisely was the Noah who used his Third Eye to capture and force Allen, Kanda and Alma (and Road) to see the past. He imprisoned Kanda and Alma in their own horrific memories to awaken Alma. Once Alma had awakened, he was set on killing Kanda off; all the while Kanda was set on killing Alma. In the end, Kanda ended up stabbing Allen in pure rage because he kept interfering and tried to help. Because Allen was stabbed by Kanda's Mugen, the Innocence damaged the part of Allen that was Noah, and ultimately awakened the Fourteenth (yada, yada, you know the rest).

Saving Allen however meant that Lavi (and Bookman) would get abducted by the Noah. If they got taken, I wouldn't know where to look for them. It never specified in the manga where the Noah's whereabouts were located. Furthermore, it never showed whether Lavi survived the torture they put him through or not…

On the other hand, if I chose to save Lavi, I would have to make sure Fiidora's – the Noah of corrosion – parasites didn't infect him. Those parasites were deadly and could still act as blackmail if the Noah did somehow manage to capture Bookman. My main concern however with this option, was that the Fourteenth in Allen would be awakened. I wasn't sure there was much I could do once the Fourteenth had been awakened – I didn't know how to help Allen. All I could do was run after Allen the moment he left the Order, but knowing the exorcist, I doubted he would allow me. Not to mention, the Earl and Apocryphos would both be hunting Allen down.

Running around an unstable exorcist whose mind was constantly taken over by a Noah (and was on the run from both the Order, an independent Innocence, and the primary antagonist), was just as dangerous as playing hero and running headfirst into some secluded place filled with Noah to save an exorcist from getting tortured.

Either way, I was risking not only my own, but also Lavi and Allen's lives, no matter which of the choices I went with.

At this moment, slithering down the tub, into the water and drowning myself seemed easier. None of this seemed manageable. I was just one person, what could I possibly do to change anything? And if I somehow did end up changing it, what if I changed the future for the worst? Who was to say I would be doing the plot a favor if I went through with this?

"Oh great wise entities in this universe, please tell what to do."

As expected, nothing happened.

Stupid entities.

Deciding I had been hiding out in the sanatorium for an hour too long by now, I pulled myself together and got out of the bath. It took every ounce of self-restraint I possessed not to just give everything up and go back to moping in the warm water.

Wrapping a towel around my body, I ended up standing in front of the mirror and staring at myself for a little too long. It wasn't a stare of admiration, as in "gee, I look so hot!", but more of a stare in surprise and slight confusion, as in "who the hell is _that?!"_

Physically, I had changed a lot since I got here. I used to think of myself as fairly average when it came to body size and weight. Of course, due to laziness and too much dessert, I had the usual belly fat and larger thighs – which led to the "crap, I should probably start working out,"-problem, every teenage girl surely must have faced sometime in their life. It was all empty worries however, that I never did anything about.

But ever since becoming an exorcist, my body had taken a few interesting turns. I had gained more weight, due to the sudden extra muscle, but at the same time I had also lost the unnecessary fat around my stomach and thighs. It wasn't exactly a _drastic_ change in my appearance, but it was visible. And I was happy with it – I looked healthier.

On a less charming side however, I had also gained a considerable amount of ugly scars by now. Some of the smaller scars disappeared with time, but there were also some that I knew were probably permanent. Luckily, nothing bad had happened to my face yet, and the worst scar I had was a long claw-shaped white mark across my upper arm. It was from the wound I got back on my first mission, when I fought that creepy clown-lookalike Akuma in the church. That damn thing still managed to wake me up on some nights.

Sighing, I left my reflection in the mirror alone and turned around, changing into a pair of shorts and a comfortable shirt. I was in a particular bad mood today, and so, deciding I wanted to rebel against the laws of society, I chose not to wear my shoes.

Not need for dramatic gasps.

I liked living the thug life.

Finishing up, I trotted out of the sanatorium and decided to go to the library. The room was quiet, and most of the time empty – it was the perfect place to think. Not to mention, I loved the smell of the old books in the library.

Yes, I sniffed books.

Sue me.

To my disappointment (not to mention irritation), as I entered the library, I realized I was _not_ alone in the room. And as if my mood couldn't get any worse, it just had to be _that_ guy.

The green-haired, two-dotted, half-converted Akuma Exorcist. Out of the five Third Exorcists that had joined the Order, he was without a doubt the one I disliked the most. As if his broccoli hair and stupid smirk wasn't enough, his personality was worse than crap. Arrogance and cockiness paired with sarcastic wit did not fair well in the same person.

It would be obvious to anyone that Tokusa and I did not get along. Far from, in fact. We were constantly bickering, sneering and throwing spiteful remarks at each other. I'm sure he disliked me just as much as I disliked him.

Mumbling something incoherent under my breath, I threw an angry glare in Tokusa's direction (who had _definitely_ seen me, but simply continued to act casual and read his stupid book in his stupid armchair) and walked toward the couch.

I let myself fall backwards, my feet and arms sprawled to all sides as I landed on the soft furniture. Heaving in a breath, I decided it would be in my best interest to simply ignore him and move on to my planning. I opened the notebook I had brought to the library, and began to scribble down the pros and cons of every decision I was to make in the future. Barely a minute passed by before an annoying voice cut me off in my own thoughts.

"I didn't know you kept a _diary_."

The sarcasm and dry entertainment put into the sentence made me seethe with anger. Sitting up, I snapped my head around to give Tokusa a venomous glare over my shoulder.

"There is nothing wrong with keeping a diary. Besides, this is a _notebook_ I use for reminders to myself. Get your facts straight before you open that stupid mouth of yours."

Tokusa simply raised an eyebrow in indifference. Growling furiously, I turned my back to him and went back to my making of plans.

"'Dear Diary'," Tokusa quoted in humorless mock, making my pen pause on top of the scribbled paper, "'today I had fish for breakfast. It was bad, so I may have to pay the bathroom a visit later."

"Ha-Ha," I said dryly. Spinning around at full speed, I grabbed the nearest book on the coffee table beside me and threw it with all my might toward Tokusa. The Third Exorcist effortlessly dodged it, the smirk on his lips widening in entertainment. I glared at him. "Can't you go bother someone else with your annoying presence? I'm actually trying to concentrate here."

"Only because your memory seems to be short-termed, I will remind you that I was here before you. If anybody needs to leave, it's you."

"Well I was at the _Order_ first."

"That is true."

When Tokusa made no indication to leave, I sighed in defeat and went back to my notebook (once again).

Silence finally filled the room.

I didn't know what to write.

The minutes ticked by rather loudly.

I still didn't know what to write.

My body fell backwards to rest on the couch again.

Nothing.

I swung my leg back and forth in tact with the clock's ticking.

_What should I do?_

I let the notebook fall on top of my eyes to hide my face from the world.

_How will I save them?_

More minutes passed by…

_Who should I help first?_

More time passed…

_How will I ever be able to –? _

"Bella~!"

_Lavi._

I would be able to recognize that happy playful voice just about anywhere.

"Leave me alone to wither in the deep abyss of my despairing thoughts!" I whined, my voice slightly muffled by the fact that my entire face was hidden underneath a large (but mostly empty) notebook. Not being able to help myself, I still ended up peeking from under the book, noticing that Lavi had now paused by the couch and was staring at me in confusion.

"You are so overdramatic." Tokusa commented from somewhere behind me. Gritting my teeth, I straightened myself up and turned my head again, raising my eyebrows in seriousness.

"You know," I began, Tokusa watching me in silent curiosity, "you might think _I'm_ overdramatic, but when an octopus gets stressed out, it eats itself. Now _that's_ overdramatic."

I heard Lavi break into a loud fit of laughter.

"How do you even know things like that, Bella?"

It was Allen's voice.

I was _this_ close to answering "the internet, mate". My brain seemed to send a shock of warning through my system though, alerting my already open mouth _not _to say it.

"…Books?" I ended up saying rather lamely. My nose scrunched up in disapproval at the answer.

I watched as Allen entered the library and headed for the couch Lavi (who had somehow managed to move my feet enough to take a seat) and I were sat in, followed by the usual indifference-looking Inspector Link. The white-haired boy raised an eyebrow.

"It sounds like something Lavi would have told you. He knows some pretty weird things."

I shrugged, silently agreeing with Allen. Lavi did know some pretty odd things, probably because he was a Bookman. There was this one time where he told me that apparently Napoleon the First was buried with all parts of his body except one. Not gonna get into too much detail, but let's just say the thing that was missing was the part of the body that any man would certainly want to keep.

Yeah, I didn't feel like finishing my sausages that day.

"Nice socks." Lavi commented, snickering. Confused at his remark, I let my eyes fall to my feet resting on the cushions of the couch, only to immediately mentally face palm myself.

I hadn't realized until now that the socks I was wearing wasn't even the same color. One was a vivid pink and the other was a dull gray.

Great. Just great.

At this point, I didn't even have the energy to care about it (or to start cussing in another language than English, which usually allowed Lavi something new to laugh at).

Instead of doing _anything_, I continued to simply stare rather miserably at my different-colored socks. Everything seemed to be piling up in front of me. I needed to figure out a proper plan for the future events, but I couldn't do that because I was too tired to think, and I was too tired to think because I hadn't gotten any sleep lately, and the whole reason I hadn't gotten any sleep lately was because I was writhing my brain for any ideas during the night. It was all an evil endless circle. What made this even worse was that I didn't even know _when_ my non-existing plan would have to be taken into action. When would the next events from the canon plot unfold?

"Bella…?"

My gaze hauled its way from my feet to the gray eyes of a certain British boy. The expression on Allen's face was that of worry, and out of the corner of my eye, I could see the look was mirrored on Lavi's face.

Wait, did I just space out?

"Bella, are you alright?" Allen asked gently, making his way around the couch to squad down beside me.

"Yeah, uh, sorry – I'm just a bit tired. Haven't gotten much sleep lately." I wasn't lying, I just wasn't telling the whole truth.

"You know," Lavi said, shooting me a mildly suspicious look, "you have been acting all moody and weird lately. It's not like you at all."

Well, you know, I have just been busy figuring out how to save your ass from getting tortured by the Noah.

No big deal.

You're welcome.

"Hey, come on you two!" I chuckled, throwing my hands up in defense. I vaguely noticed a certain golden golem flying over and landing in my lap. "I'm just grumpy because I haven't gotten much sleep lately! You don't need to worry, it'll get better eventually."

"But, Bella!" Lavi whined, throwing his 'Bookman-Junior-Tantrum', "How am I supposed to tease you when you're constantly tired?!"

"Look," I started, but quickly stopped as something warm and wet hit my… lap.

Wait.

Did I just pee myself?

Confused (and a bit horrified) I looked down, only to feel my eyes widen at the sight.

Sitting in my lap was Timcanpy, his wings looking oddly limp, like the tail of a miserable and sad dog. Small transparent pebbles of water was rolling down the golem's face, and hitting my lap in barely audible _plops_.

A golden golem was in my lap.

Crying.

Timcanpy was crying in my lap.

"T-Timcanpy?!" I exclaimed in disbelief at the same time as Allen, Lavi and Link (to my surprise) did. We were all four staring at the golem in a mix of horror and confusion. It even felt like the curious eyes of a certain Third Exorcist was directed in our general direction.

"You made him cry." Lavi deadpanned, making my mouth fall open. _I_ made him cry?! How? What did I do? Did I accidently hit him? Sit on him? Why was he crying?

"Hey…Tim…" I mumbled, awkwardly patting the golem with my hand in an attempt to make him stop.

Timcanpy was crying because of me.

A golem.

I made a golem cry.

A supposed inanimate object.

That was certainly something to add to the list.

I didn't like it when others cried. It was mainly because it always made me feel awkward and I wasn't really sure how to comfort someone. It was even worse when kids cried, because they added the extra audio.

Lucky for me Timcanpy was the silent crying type.

It still made me feel uncomfortable, though.

"It's okay, Tim – I'm okay." In a desperate attempt to make the crying golem stop, I threw my arms around him and embraced him in a rather tight (probably suffocating) hug. I continued to coo the golem, like he was a child, while clutching him to my chest.

Why was he crying?

I knew a lot of animals were sensitive and often noticed it when others weren't feeling too well. Was that it? Did Timcanpy cry because he could tell I was distressed about something? Because I wasn't being honest and simply waved it off as sleep deprivation? Was he sad on my behalf? Or was he sad because I lied? Jeez, I didn't know! Golems weren't even supposed to feel emotions in the first place, let alone cry over something!

It took a while, but eventually Timcanpy seemed to calm down. Allen grabbed Tim and started inspecting him as soon as he got the chance; visibly worried that something was wrong with the golem. After we had all commented on the reasons why Timcanpy would be crying (Lavi kept joking and said that he probably had problems with a female golem – which was ridiculous considering golems didn't _actually _have a gender) the drama died down and Tim went back to normal.

At the moment, Lavi and Allen were in the middle of a heated discussion over something, both having left the couch to stand in front of each other. This left me in a rather awkward position, seeing as some kind of silent staring contest was happening between Link and Tokusa. They didn't say anything; they just stared at each other. What made it even more awkward (for me) was the fact that I _knew_ they had a history together. Which left me to be in the awkward 'just-sitting-on-the-couch-and-trying-to-ignore-you-two-staring-over-my-head' position.

The silence was unbearable.

Then, spotting my chance to slip away unnoticed, as Lavi and Allen were half faced away from me, I grabbed my notebook and silently left the room (mentally thanking myself for not wearing shoes this time).

So my 'making-plans-for-the-future-events-in-the-library" was a major fail of the day. It made my mood drop even lower, because now I had even less time than I did before.

Sighing, I decided I might as well pay the Science Division a visit. Just to check up on them, who knows, maybe I would agree to let Johnny beat my ass (again) in chess.

Entering the department full of scientists, I was quick to conclude that Johnny wasn't even here. Sighing (because now the entities in the universe were just being mean to me on purpose), I dragged my different-colored feet across the floor and ended up stopping by Jiji's worktable. Like usual, he was in the middle of doing some experiment, chemistry equipment sprawled across the table in no particular order.

"What are you doing, Jiji?" I asked, after having watched him in silence for a few minutes. The older man simply shushed me, before going back to his experiment, concentration written all over his face.

"Analyzing the bugs we retrieved back in Paris." Jiji muttered, slipping a single drop of red liquid into a flask, making bubbles appear.

I tilted my head to the side in surprise. _He is still stuck with those things?_ It had been a while since Kanda, Allen and I were on our mission in Paris and had been stuck inside an orphanage, trying to protect the children from the Akuma attack. The reason we couldn't exit the building was because of those mechanical bugs Jiji was currently analyzing, cutting off any connection with the outside world. They must be hard to crack if Jiji was still occupied studying them.

"You look tired, Bella." Jiji commented, his brows drawn together in worry as he looked up from his research. "You have dark circles under your eyes. Are you getting enough sleep?"

I scrunched my nose up and looked at my feet. It had gotten to the point where I had visible dark circles under my eyes? At this point I might end up looking like L from Death Note. If only I possessed his intelligence and analytical mind when it came to making plans and saving people...

"Not really," I answered, giving the scientist before me a small smile, "I have... um... kind of had a lot on my mind lately."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Jiji asked, his experiment forgotten for the moment.

_Yes_, I thought to myself, _I really do_. I wanted nothing more than to just blurt everything out and tell someone the knowledge I possessed. Jiji was smart – he was a scientist – I bet he could come up with a brilliant plan to save Lavi and Allen. He was much brighter than me and probably possessed all sort of 'grown-up-wisdom' that I didn't have.

"Nah, it's nothing for you to worry about." I ended up saying against my will.

"Well, if you need anything, all you have to do is ask." Jiji finally said, giving me a smile. Smiling back, I quickly decided to change the subject by pointing toward a large box placed on a nearby table, filled to the top with I-don't-even-know-what.

"What's that?"

"Some of my old inventions I decided to thrash." Jiji answered, going back to inspecting his mechanical bugs.

"Why did you thrash them?" I inquired.

"There was no need for them anymore. You are free to take a look and see if anything seems to be of interest."

I eyed the box suspiciously. It's not like I didn't want to look through it, in fact, the possibility of what could be in the box had me filled with curiosity. It's just that this was _Jiji's_ stuff. Him and the rest of the scientists invented so much dangerous crap I didn't trust the contents of the box. If I stuck my hand down there, it may very well never return.

"Do you have a pair of acid-proved gloves?"

Jiji didn't even comment on my question, but simply pointed to a pair of yellow gloves on the other end of his worktable. Grabbing the gloves and slipping them on, I neared the large box of goodies and peered into it.

If a pair of gloves made to withstand acid wasn't protection enough, this box didn't deserve to be alive.

Pulling in a deep breath, I stuck my right hand into the box, rummaging through the old inventions.

"What's this?" I asked, after I had pulled up my first interesting discovery of the box. It was a square-shaped electronic machine of sorts, a little larger than my hand, with a large screen and two buttons in front. What caught my interest was that it sort of looked like an old Gameboy.

"A tracking device." Jiji answered, walking around his worktable to stand beside me. My heart skipped a beat, as my interest for the invention seemed to double.

"A tracking device…?" I repeated absentmindedly.

"Yeah, you just place this on the person you wish to track down," Jiji unplugged a small chip at the size of my pinky from the instrument, rolling it between his fingers, "and the person wearing the chip will show up on the screen, no matter where in the world he or she may be."

I watched fascinated as Jiji clicked the _on/off_ button, and the screen on the electronic gizmo flickered to life, showing an overview of a world map. Jiji then proceeded to zoom in on a red dot, blinking on a specific place in Europe, the United Kingdom, somewhere near London.

"And that's where we are." Jiji concluded, once he was done demonstrating how it worked by tracking himself down on the map.

"That's pretty convenient," I commented, looking up from the gadget, "why are you throwing it out?"

"There is no need for it now that the golems we have are traceable." The scientist explained, returning to his experiment. "You seem pretty fascinated by it, you can have it if you want."

"Thanks…" I murmured, staring at the electronic device in my hand.

Ever so slowly, a plan was taking form in my head. I finally knew what to do. I knew how I could save Allen and Lavi – both of my friends would make it. It was as if this one Gameboy lookalike tool was the key to all of my problems. It was the one thing I had needed to find, in order for my mind to finally get running with a proper plan.

Thanks to Jiji's tracking device, I knew I finally had a chance at changing the plot.

* * *

**A/N: I am _so_ sorry! It's been months since I updated this story. It wasn't supposed to take this long, but for some reason this particular chapter was a pain to write, not to mention I have been drowning in assignments and exams (the usual reason people on don't update). On a positive site, I have most of the next chapter prewritten, so it shouldn't bee too long before the next update. **

**As always, thank you so much for the support, you guys are amazing! **


	22. Partaking In the Game

**A/N: And the Alma Karma arc has finally begun.**

* * *

_[We always believed that..._

_When we get through this sacred war..._

_There would be a world that we dreamed of…]_

* * *

**America, Black Order, North American Branch_ **

"Intruder Alert! An unknown has been sighted within the vicinity of the headquarters. This is not Akuma. It is breaking through Barriers fast!"

"The Alma Karma's there~" The blue-haired doll raised a stuffed hand, pointing in the direction of the target.

"Okay." The man answered the doll on his shoulder, raising a hand to change the position of his dark top hat. "They're kind of excited to see a visitor after such a long time."

* * *

**Greece, Lefcus_**

"Aaaaah~ what do I do?!" I shouted, hitting my head against a nearby wall. "Think Bella, think!"

So I was currently on a mission in Lefcus – Greece. No, correct that, I was on _the_ mission in Greece that happened to be at the same time as _the_ invasion of the North American Branch! And guess what? I had no freaking idea of how to get over there! I was stuck in goddamn Greece – how was I supposed to keep Allen from awakening as the Fourteenth from here?! I couldn't! I needed to go and change the plot myself or else everything was bound to go wrong! I couldn't have Allen become the Fourteenth _now_ and then leave the Order! That'd be terrible! That's why I needed to come up with something fast! Being stuck here was not part of my plan.

"Think." _BUMP!_ "God." _BUMP!_ "Damn." _BUMP!_ "It."

Why didn't I come up with something a little before? I kept worrying about what to do with Lavi when the Noah abducted him – and how I could prevent him from getting tortured. Well I figured out a solution to that with the help of Jiji's old invention – the tracking device. I managed to slip down the tracker in Lavi's uniform when he wasn't looking and so I have the device to find him hidden in my bag (admittedly, Bookman did shoot me a rather confused look when he found me tripping out of his and Lavi's room). Even though all of that was also freaking me out, as I didn't know how to explain it to the others that I just _so happened_ to place a tracking device in Lavi's jacket, _that_ problem would just have to wait. At the moment I needed to figure out how to get to the North American Branch.

I'll admit it, I felt extremely bad about the fact that I would have to leave Lenalee here all by herself with the Third Exorcist (who I knew would start attacking her), but there wasn't much to do. Stopping Allen from awakening as the Fourteenth was the first thing on my priority list over 'things I needed to change in the plot while here'. Luckily Lenalee and the Third left a few minutes ago, telling me that I had to stay and protect the camp from…well, nothing (there wasn't anything here). I think Lenalee just wanted to separate the Third and me, as we didn't get along very well.

A sudden oddly strong gust of wind ripped me out of my thoughts, making me raise my head from the wall and look up from the ground to find…

…_What?_

… An…ark gate…?

A few yards away from where I was standing, was a big, round, dark gapping hole placed up against the wall of one of the buildings.

_No…it's not the ark…it's not the one Allen controls at least._ But it was definitely some sort of portal… the Noah's ark…? But…there was no number on it. It was just a big gapping hole placed up against the wall. _But when did it get there? What's going on, I'm so confused?_

I eyed the black hole suspiciously.

Curiosity getting the better of me, I took few slow steps toward it, holding out a hand as if to try and touch it.

Because when a random dark hole appears on the wall, it's in ones best interest to touch it. Especially in _this_ Universe.

_Should I go through it?_

What a great idea! Let's go through the unknown hole of death and forget everything about saving my friends! For goodness sake, Bella, just walk away and focus on getting to the North American Branch.

_But what if it leads to some important place, where everyone will be saved and live happily ever after?_

What if it leads to someplace weird, where I'll be trapped for all eternity?

_Right…_

I didn't get to think much more about it, as the hole suddenly started to decrease and become smaller and smaller. _It's closing?!_

"W-wait!" _It's closing fast!_

_Damn! Screw it!_

I sped up, quickening my pace. Once I was close enough I jumped, arms forward as if I were to dive and then squeezed my eyes shut. _If this is a trick, then I'll have two broken arms and a concussion by the end of the day!_

* * *

**America, Black Order, North American Branch_**

"Calm down Kanda!" Allen yelled, holding a firm grip on the dark-haired exorcist's sword, the tip of it mere millimeters away from piercing through the plush skin on the headless doll. "You know that an attack like this doesn't affect Road."

The before headless doll, slowly started regenerating, small strands of dark hair growing out and slowly forming a head again.

"Don't let them provoke you!" The white-haired boy went on, ignoring the dark, menacing look in Kanda's eyes, completely fixated on piercing the Road doll. "Those guys are plotting something against you. We need to rescue everyone who's been captured. All you need to think about is –"

"Fine." Road interrupted Allen, her head finally having fully regenerated. The doll simply looked up at Kanda, not bothered the least with the closeness of his Mugen. "If you can't believe that it's Alma then~"

A big round mark of an eye suddenly appeared on the ground underneath the doll and the two exorcists, both Allen and Kanda starring at it with eyes wide in surprise.

"Let Alma himself prove it to you~" Road finished in a dark chuckle.

"Tch." Wisely clicked his tongue, holding an outstretched arm out to control the eye appearing, grinning darkly at the scene. "As I said in the beginning, Yu Kanda."

_I'm gonna use your brain to awake Alma Karma!_

"What…!?" Allen exclaimed, as poison blue electricity erupted from the mark, snaking up and capturing both exorcists. The same three-eyed demon mark as the one on Wisely, appeared on both exorcist's forehead, imprisoning them in the terrible past memories of the Second Exorcist Project.

"You mustn't look at it Walker!" Tokusa shouted at the top of his lungs, trying to warn both exorcists, but to no avail. The damage was done.

"Kanda!" Master Zu yelled in desperation, just before both Noah and exorcists were trapped in an illusion of horrific memories.

* * *

I squealed as I felt myself dive through and come out on the other side of the hole, hunching my back in the last second and then rolled over, landing in a squatted position on the floor.

"Holy mother of –!"

I took a quick glance back to find that the hole, portal, ark, or whatever it was, was gradually becoming smaller, completely disappearing after a few seconds.

_I'm not dead._

I felt like breaking into a victory-dance.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm my beating heart down a bit, before getting up and dusting off some dirt.

"Damn." I mumbled, looking down at my black tank top. "I forgot my jacket back at the camp." It was a bit too hot for an extra jacket back in Greece so I had resorted to take it off – now I kind of regretted it.

_Focus Bella! Where are you?_ I looked up, quickly scanning my surroundings.

I was currently standing in a hallway. A completely and utterly deserted hallway. _But it kinda looks like the ones we have back at the Order._

If I had been transported back to the Black Order, I was going to murder whoever made that hole appear in the first place.

I looked from my left to right, wondering which way to go before I simply shrugged my shoulders, walking whichever way felt right.

I concluded after having walked for a little while that it was really quiet here. Too quiet. With every step I took, I slowly started to get the feeling that I knew this place too well. It wasn't the Order – that much was for sure – I had lived there long enough to recognize just about every hallway (because that's what you do when you have a tendency to get lost). But it felt as if I had seen this kind of construction before.

_Am I in the North American Branch…?_

That certainly would be convenient. _But…how?_ You know what? Forget it. It didn't matter how or why I got here. I would figure it out later. At the moment, if I really was in the North American Branch, I needed to find Allen and Kanda – and quickly. Just focus on that one thing.

_Make sure the Fourteenth isn't fully awakened in Allen. _

I nearly walked into a wall as I suddenly heard voices from somewhere. I stopped; looking a little ahead to find that the hallway I had been walking down was finally ending. Large monolith of tubes and electric cables were sprawled everywhere across the floor, making it easy for me to have somewhere to hide.

I squatted in my knees and used the cables to hide myself, approaching the exit carefully, the voices getting louder as I got closer.

_Don't make any noise._

_Silent steps._

_Quiet…_

Getting closer I could finally make out what the voices were saying.

"I-I beg you to stop! Don't bother Alma!" _Isn't that old man Zu's voice?_ "I beg you! P-please! Not Alma…" _Wait, how far in the invasion are we?_

"Don't be so stupid old man." Someone answered Zu'z begging. It was a voice I had never heard before. "We _are_ the Noah you know. I have no mercy for you guys."

Finally making it to the exit, I stretched myself far enough to look in-between one of the cables, careful to stay hidden. The sight made my heart fall to the ground, my eyes widen in horror and my blood freeze.

It was_ exactly_ like I remembered from the manga.

Pinned to the wall against their free will, were all of the important higher-ups; Bak, Zu, Renee, Lvellie and some other people I didn't recognize. Reever, Johnny and Peck the Perve were there as well…

And sitting closer to where I was, were Allen and Kanda, both of them placed above a three-shaped eye on the floor. Tokusa was sitting by the outer part of it. A doll version of Road was in the eye as well.

_Oh God!_ The sight made me completely forget what was happening – or else I just didn't care. I could feel myself gradually panicking by the scene in front of me.

_Now what do I do?! How should I help them?! Do I stay hidden and come up with something?!_

Yes, do that.

They didn't know I was here, so recklessly jumping out wouldn't help anyone. I needed to just calm down and stick to the plan. Figure out how to get to Wisely, without getting spotted, and take him out. Take him and his Third Eye out, and the Millennium Earl's plan is done for.

I pulled in a silent breath through my nose to calm myself. Grabbing onto one of the tubes for support, I repositioned my feet and peeked my head over, trying to get a look of where –

_SMACK!_

I froze.

A dozen pair of eyes turned to look in my general direction.

_Oh you have got to be motherfu –!_

My eyes flickered irritated to a specific piece of metal that had inconveniently decided to fall and connect loudly with the floor by my feet.

…

…_Shit._

So much for going in total stealth mode.

Now would be a great time to have a random cat appear and take blame for the sudden loud noise. You know, just like in the movies. Sadly, I was just not that lucky of a person.

If I stayed here, would the Noah and Akuma come looking for me?

Mumbling one curse after the other, currently hating _everything_, I decided hiding no longer would be an option.

"Allen! Kanda!" I shouted, getting up from my hiding position and jumping over the cables, course right for my friends. I stopped a few yards away from the Eye however, afraid that if I got too close I might get stuck in the damn thing too.

I took a few quick breaths, and then looked up from the two exorcists by the floor, letting my eyes rest on Reever and Johnny.

"B-Bella?!" Reever exclaimed shocked, looking just as puzzled as everybody else. "What are you doing here? How did you get here?!"

_That's a pretty damn good question._

I opened my mouth, but was immediately cut off.

"And who might you be?"

I snapped my head away from Reever and Johnny, my eyes falling upon the person who just addressed the mentioned question.

The Millennium Earl.

My apparent sworn enemy as an exorcist, and the main antagonist of the D. Gray-man series.

The first thought that ran through my mind was 'fat'.

_Extremely fat._

I actually wasn't quite sure what to answer the man. _"Hello, I'm the new exorcist here. My name is Bella Morrison. I'm here to ruin your plans of awakening the Fourteenth. I'd appreciate it if you didn't kill me, as that would make matters a lot easier." _

As I tried to think of what to answer him, I let my eyes scan the rest of the Noah present at the moment. The first one my eyes came in contact with was Sheryl, sitting on one of the cables with an amused smirk on his face. _Snake._ He reminded me of a snake. I didn't like snakes – ergo – I didn't like him.

The second one I laid my eyes on was Tyki. Not gonna lie, he was _really_ good-looking. He was the kind of guy I would date, despite the fact that he was probably, like, ten years older than me; I'd still do it. I think I ended up staring at him a bit too long, the guy cocking his head curiously to the side.

And then there was Wisely. He was sitting in a crouched position, chin resting in his hand, looking a bit bored with an exception from his eyes widened in surprise. _Don't look at his third eye._ I kept my eyes locked with his, forcing myself mentally not to look at his interesting forehead. If I did, he could do _anything_; put me into the same memory-awakening eye as Allen and Kanda, or if he wanted to, simply kill me by blowing my head up.

"Tokusa, are you alright?" I asked, not daring to let my eyes fall from the white-haired Noah. His expression changed from surprised to that of a person who is deep in thought, as if he was trying to figure something out.

"Y-you idiot!" I heard Tokusa snap, the Third Exorcist seemed to be breathing in-between ragged breaths. _Jeez, calm down. I'm here to save you… sort of. He must be in a lot of pain right now, though_… "What the hell are you doing here?!"

"Bella get out of here!" This time it was Johnny yelling something, desperation gleaming from his eyes behind the glasses. "They're the Noah! You can't fight them alone! They're too strong!"

I glanced over at Johnny, feeling my eyes soften at the sight of him. But I ignored his comment. Instead of running away, I ended up giving him a calm smile, as if to say that everything would be all right.

"I don't have to." I answered him, shifting my gaze back to the white-haired Noah, my expression instantly hardening and my smile fading. The Noah continued to look at me with a wondering expression, an emotion of confusion flashing through his golden eyes.

_That's right. I don't have to fight all of them. _Wisely was the one who was currently in control of Allen and Kanda. All I needed to do was knock him out – that should stop his powers from working. As long as it was _him_, I could do it. As far as I knew, he wasn't that skilled when it came to physical battle. His age, height and weight was all in all the same as mine. And I _definitely _had more skills in combat fighting than he had. So this should be easy. _Just don't look at his forehead._ Avoid his Third Eye, attack him quick and hard – and then he should be easy to take down.

"That's odd…" Wisely mumbled, not removing his gaze from me for even a second. I didn't let him finish his sentence, and honestly, I didn't really care what he was about to say.

I focused on my legs, tightening all of the muscles. I might not be the _quickest _person in the world, but I _could_ run pretty fast for a short amount of time if needed. It was something my body eventually managed to learn after the many times I had had to flee from a raging Kanda, after having teased him in some way (mostly by brushing his hair or touching his Mugen). And for the record, that guy was _ridiculously _fast.

_I can do this._

I set off, accelerating and sprinting across the floor. I made sure to lower and keep my shoulder back, and crouch a bit in my stance. Once close enough, I pumped my legs hard to jump forward, wrapping my arms around Wisely, tackling him off his seat and onto the ground.

The guy landed with a loud groan on his back; I myself, avoided any sort of discomfort as I landed on top of him. I quickly straightened myself up, grabbing a hold of his turban, and then yanked it down over his forehead, concealing the Third Eye so I didn't accidently end up looking at it.

Once the eye was no longer a concern, I spread my legs on either side of the Noah, and then (rather harshly) pinned his hands to the ground with my feet. Wisely stared up at me with wide eyes, full of confusion. I grabbed my fans at the back of my belt and then held one of them to his neck, hoping the mere presence of Innocence so close would make him think twice about trying anything fishy. _Damn that was fast Bella._ If it had been any other kind of situation, I would have smirked at my own praising. But this time, I tried to make the coldest, blank expression I could manage.

"Here's what's going to happen," I said sternly, leaning daringly close to Wisely's face and keeping my eyes locked with his, "you're going to let my friends free from your illusion," I got a bit closer, ignoring the temptation of removing myself, as this was a bit _too_ close for my own comfort, "it can be done in two ways; either you do it willingly, or I force you. Either way is fine with me."

_Wow. I wonder where all of that confidence and threatening words came from?_

The Noah, however, didn't seem that impressed by my words, let alone threatened by them. His head twitched to the side, a large grin of mock spreading across his face, as if he didn't believe I had the guts to do it.

"Is that so?" Wisely asked, his golden eyes shining with fake curiosity and something else that seemed like… confusion? Why did he seem so confused? What was there for _him_ – who could read minds – to be confused about? "How do you plan on doing that, however, now that you just let your own guard down?"

… _Huh? _

And with that said, I felt someone slam into me from behind, knocking me off of Wisely and making me slide several yards across the ground. I groaned, quickly rolling onto my back, and was about to get up, as I felt someone sit on top of me and pin me to the ground by my hands.

I glared up to find that the attacker was Tyki, using his hands to keep my wrists in place and looking down at me with a large smirk on his pretty face. His eyes glanced warily to the fan in my hand; the other weapon was lying closer to Wisely as I lost it when Tyki had tackled me. Noah and exorcist position reversed now, Tyki's smirk widened, as he used his free foot to kick the fan out of my hand and away from my reach.

I huffed in irritation, my breath catching in my throat from nearly choking underneath Tyki's weight. The guy was surprisingly heavy, too heavy, to be sitting on top of my stomach without causing me to have troubles breathing properly.

Thinking quickly now that I was weaponless, I swung my free legs up and wrapped them around Tyki's neck from behind, using all of my strength to yank them and Tyki back and onto the floor.

Now, a normal person would usually receive a concussion from having the back of their head slammed into the ground, Tyki however, wasn't normal. Instead of hitting the ground, the Noah used his "Choose" ability, meaning he went right through the floor and disappeared.

I didn't waste one second of the Noah's absence, scrambling to my feet and running to grab the fan closest to me, before turning on my heels and then run for the other one. Once being reunited with both of my weapons, I got in a fighting position, watching the floor with caution and trying to find the spot where Tyki would emerge.

"Bella be careful!" I heard Johnny yell, nothing but worry and desperation in his voice. "That Noah is Tyki Mikk! He has the ability to –!"

"I know what his ability is." I cut Johnny off in a stern voice, holding my concentration on the floor and the walls closest to where I was standing. "He can make himself intangible to any solid objects as long as it's earth-made."

"That's correct." I suddenly heard Tyki's voice right from under me, making me jump back in time before the Noah attacked me.

_First opening, second seal._

As Tyki tried to attack again, I used a newly discovered attack to stop him, enforcing a long water-whip that grabbed his arm before he could land a hit on me. As the Noah tried to dive into the floor again, I enforced another whip with my other fan, grabbing a hold of his foot, pulling him off the ground and then slammed him into the opposite wall.

"Innocence isn't earth-made though." I smirked in triumph as I heard the satisfying crash from Tyki colliding with the wall, dust and stones concealing him. The two whips immaterialized themselves and fell to the floor in a long puddle of water.

Everybody was completely silent, a heavy tension falling upon the scene as everyone was waiting for the next course of action. _Where is he?_ I narrowed my eyes together in concentration, trying to make out where Tyki's form was in the large cloud of dust.

I felt my eyes dilate as something dark and quick suddenly moved out of the dust cloud, and before I could react, I felt myself getting flung across the floor and into the wall behind me. The wind was knocked out of my lungs, as my back connected with the wall, and a few colorful dots danced before my eyes from the impact. I tried to raise my fans and attack, but Tyki was much quicker, grabbing both weapons in my hands and shoving them away, the fans landing on the floor too far away for me to reach.

I squinted down and backed further against wall, as Tyki placed both of his arms on either side of my head against it, not in a nice way, but in a very frightening and threatening way.

"I have to say, that was quite impressive. You definitely caught me off guard there." Tyki smirked in triumph, cocking his head slightly to the side. I think I might have stopped breathing at this point, and my heart rate had surely sped up to the speed of that of a rabbit.

"I don't believe we have met before." Tyki went on. I continued to simply stare up at him, feeling the fear and panic rapidly increase, and was most likely visible by looking into my wide eyes. "Like your friend just said, I am Tyki Mikk. I believe I caught onto your name; Bella, was it?"

The way he said it was just so nonchalant and gentleman-like, as if we were placed in a completely different situation. I simply nodded, trying to push away the multiple vivid images swirling around in my head of the different ways this guy could remove my organs right now.

"Here is a question for you Bella; how exactly is it you know of my abilities, without us ever having met?" Tyki asked, watching me with golden eyes full of curiosity and caution. The question caught me off guard, making me stare dumbfounded for a few seconds, before quickly composing myself and deciding to answer him with a stern voice and a glare.

"My friends have unfortunately had the displeasure of your company. Apparently, Allen had part of his heart ripped out by you."

"Oh, so you're a friend of the Cheating Boy'? Should have guessed that." Tyki shrugged his shoulders in a no-big-deal-sort-of-way. "So you got the information from him. Then let me ask you something else." Tyki leaned a bit closer, a sudden unpleasant, dark glint in his eyes that made my blood freeze and the hairs on the back of my neck rise. _I went right into a trap._ I could feel it. I answered his question wrong.

"Have you or any of your friends ever met _him_ before?" Tyki glanced at someone behind him, and I followed his stare, locking eyes with Wisely.

_Crap. I screwed up._

I didn't know what to answer, and so, I ended up simply staring at Wisely, not daring to say anything.

"Wisely was just recently reincarnated." Tyki said matter of fact, turning his eyes away from the white-haired Noah and back to me. "So how is it you knew _exactly_ who to attack, for your friends to become dispelled from the illusion?"

I barely got to panic for two seconds before an idea popped up in my head, making me smirk up at Tyki in mock.

"Not sure if you have realized it Tyki, but the mark surrounding the Cotton ball and Rapunzel is the same mark on Wisely's forehead."

"Cotton ball… Rapunzel…?" Tyki repeated confused, seeming to buy my lie of how I realized Wisely was the one in charge of the memory illusion. I simply couldn't help but smirk wider, finally feeling like the superior and like I got the upper hand here.

"How is that possible though…?" I heard Wisely ask, making both Tyki and I glance confused back at him. Even though the Noah looked bored, his eyes were telling me he was trying to figure something out. "You haven't looked at my Third Eye even once, ever since coming here. You even went to the trouble of concealing it with my turban. Here is _the_ question; how did you know not to look directly at my Third Eye?"

I felt my own smirk immediately disappear, all feeling of being superior disappearing quickly. Tyki's smirk however returned, and the guy looked back at me with questioning mock in his eyes.

"That's not the oddest thing however…" Wisely mumbled, placing his chin in his hand and looking back at me with an expression that said he almost couldn't be bothered to figure out whatever problem was on his mind.

"I can't seem to gain access to your mind."

A long heavy silence followed.

"…Huh?" I whispered dumbfounded, staring back at Wisely with eyes full of confusion.

_He can't get access to my mind? Meaning he can't read my thoughts and whatever else might be in my head? Seriously? _

Just what was this unpleasant meeting turning into?

I guess it was kind of a good thing in the end. I mean, what would happen if he _did_ have access to my thoughts, memories and whatever? He would know I was not from here and that I had a bunch of useful information for them to benefit from. But how? How could he not read my mind? It made no sense, as far as I knew the individual human brain shouldn't be that different from each other.

"What do you mean?" Sheryl asked, looking from Wisely to me, and then back to Wisely.

"I mean, I can't get access to reading her mind." Wisely answered.

I felt Tyki leaning a bit closer, making my eyes snap away from Wisely and back to the Noah in front of me, a large dark smirk etched over his face, and his breath hot against my skin.

"Tell me, girl. How do you know of Wisely's ability, again?"

* * *

**A/N: I feel like this particular chapter has a LOT of innuendos. You guys have no idea how many times I wanted to pull the "that's what she said," joke, while editing this chapter. The struggle was real…**

**On second note, there is a reason for Wisely's incapability to read Bella's mind. And no, it's not something cheesy like; "her mind is different from other's, because she is from another dimension". You're gonna have to wait a while for an explanation, but I promise you, it's not something I just put in there for the fun of it.**

**On a THIRD note (this author's note is getting too long), I have strongly considered for Tyki to give Bella a nickname (like he calls Allen "Cheating Boy", Lavi "Mr. Eye patch", and Kanda "Mr. Kitchen knife"). I feel like it's part of his character to simply call other people names, as if he can't be bothered to remember their actual names. Well, in case you agree, I have a question for you guys (because I'm running out of ideas).**

**What would be a good nickname for Tyki to call Bella?**


	23. Beautiful Massacre

_Crap._

_I screwed up. _

_I screwed up big time. _

_I'm practically in shit to my knees now. No, scratch that, I'm in shit that's way over my head. And to top it off, I am so very confused right now. How is it Wisely can't read my mind? I'm not sure whether to be relieved or scared for my own life._

"Huh!? He moved?!" I suddenly heard Wisely exclaim. Turning my head away from Tyki (who was still placed inappropriately in front of me), I saw to my surprise Allen getting up from the floor, an angry scowl on his face.

"Where did your short temper go?!" He yelled in rage, jumping forward and landing a clenched fist right in the middle of Kanda's forehead – on the Third Eye, which was in control of the illusion both of them were placed in.

"That's what caused him to snap?!" Wisely shouted in disbelief, the Third Eye on Kanda's forehead slowly starting to crack as if it was about to fall off. Wisely seemed to be affected by this, yelling in agony and clenching his forehead in pain while falling backwards, "MY HEAD!"

Kanda was sent flying across the floor because of Allen's punch, connecting with a nearby wall and making a loud cracking noise, which made me cringe. Road (who was still in her doll-form) also seemed to have awoken, as she seemed to be talking to Allen.

"My head! It hurts! IT HURTS!" Wisely continued to wail, rolling around on his back and holding his head in between his hands.

Not gonna lie, I felt a little bad for him. If one of the _Noah _was rolling around on the ground and screaming in agony, the physical injury received _had _to be painful.

I thanked whatever entity was up there for not being in Wisely's position right now.

"We've entered Wisely's 'incompetence time'." Sheryl murmured in the direction of Tyki and me.

"That's mean." Tyki answered in a sweat drop.

These guys were so weird. One minute they were treating me like an actual enemy who posed a threat, and the next they were chitchatting, as if we were old familiar friends meeting over a cup of tea.

_Ladies and gentlemen, meet the logic of the Noah clan._

"Later, bitches." I said, using this as a distraction to maneuver myself under Tyki's arm, grab my weapon and jump over to the other side of one of the cables, putting some distance between the Noah and myself. "Hey, Allen!"

"B-Bella!?" The white-haired exorcist exclaimed in surprise, his eyes widening in disbelief as he turned around to see me. "What are you doing here?! When did you get here?! _How_ did you get here?"

"I'll answer that another day." I murmured, jumping over another cable and landing in front of Allen and Road.

I hadn't paid much attention to Road since getting here, for the obvious reason that she looked like a non-threatening plush doll, and posed no potential threat compared to the rest of the Noah here (who had continuously used me as a punching bag). Now that I was in the safe zone of my British companion however, she had my full attention.

Time for a quick confession:

Road Kamelot may or may not be my all-time favorite person from the series. I think it had to do with her childishly colorful personality. She was like a pregnant woman with constant mood swings; ranging from playful, sweet and affectionate to sadistic, secretive and possessive.

One had to love pregnant women.

As if that wasn't enough, she had now taken the appearance of a cute (yet slightly creepy) plush doll.

I loved creepy plush dolls.

At this point I could feel the inner fangirl coming to life and bubbling up once again. Only this time, it was much stronger (probably from the various times I had had to suppress it) and it was _begging_ me to give out, even if just for a few seconds.

And so I did.

"Oh my gosh, you are so cute, I LOVE YOU!" I squealed (probably a little too loud), grabbing the doll off the floor and nuzzling the side of my cheek against her. The satisfaction from the move was indescribable.

Because who in their right mind wouldn't hug their favorite character if given the chance?

"Allen can I please, pretty please, keep her?" The look on Allen's face was priceless, but I was too caught up in the moment to laugh at it. Oddly enough, Road hadn't said or done anything yet.

"You keep your filthy exorcist hands off my Road!" Sheril shouted, looking about ready to tear my head off.

If looks could kill, I would have dropped dead a thousand times over.

I gulped.

This man had a particular father-complex, and was rather overprotective of his adopted daughter (who I was currently glomping). His Noah ability was telekinesis, meaning he could easily break my spine and snap my neck if he wanted to.

_I don't want to die just yet._

Chuckling nervously, I slowly put Road back on the ground and patted her head a last time. "Sorry…"

Ever so slowly I got up from the ground, keeping my hands raised in a defensive motion, as if to show Sheril Kamelot I was not planning on fangirling over his daughter again anytime soon. I was about ready to make a dramatic jump to duck behind Allen and escape Sheril's deadly golden eyes, but the voice of Road cut me off.

"We might be a little too late…" She said, turning her glassy button-eyes to look up at something. I let my head fall to the side in a gesture of confusion.

"Huh?"

"WALKER! MORRISON!"

Shocked, I snapped my head around, only to find Tokusa flying right past my nose. The Third Exorcist had been tangled and trapped by a large amount of thick wires – and by the looks of it, they seemed _tight_.

"Tokusa!" Allen and I shouted in unison, quickly turning on our feet.

"Th-the womb!" Tokusa yelled, gritting his teeth in pain. "Stop Alma Karma!"

_Crap that's right! I didn't get to stop Kanda's memories before they awoke Alma._

For probably the thousandth time ever since arriving here, I found my body seething with anger directed at myself. I had let my own emotions get the better of me, and I had completely lost track of the original goal. I needed to pull myself together, because at this point, everything I had worked so hard for would blow up in my face. I did not want to deal with a future where Allen was on the run from the Order, and was slowly turning into a Noah. I did not want him to stand before me as my enemy.

And I absolutely did _not_ want to be reunited with an empty shell of what used to be Allen Walker – what used to be _my_ friend.

Not when I _knew_ I had a chance of saving him.

Mind filled with various emotions, I murmured a few bad words my grandmother used to say, grabbing Allen's arm and pulling him out of the way as a big cable fell down, nearly crushing both of us.

"Everyone!" Allen exclaimed distracted, not sparing any of the falling rocks even a glance. I glanced in the direction Allen was looking, and realized everybody – with an exception for the Noah – had been tangled in and was being choked by the large electronic cables and tubes. My main concern out of all of the people was Johnny, Reever, Master Zu and Bak (because let's be honest, they were the only people here I actually liked and cared for).

Before I could even make any sort of indication of movement toward them, the sight of a large head-like bubble, seeming to be growing around a person, stopped me in my tracks. _Wait, is that Alma?_

"What is that…?" Allen whispered, eyes widening from shock or fear.

The hairs on the back of my neck were prickling and my senses had heightened due to the sudden kick of adrenalin. I found myself ever so grateful by the fact that I knew what was happening around us (unlike a certain someone).

"The Dark Matter," I answered Allen slowly, my brain going into overdrive, as I tried to remember what where to happen next, "in Alma."

_I wish I had brought a collection of the D. Gray-Man volumes with me._

"Alma?!"

"The awakening of Alma's hatred is being transformed into the Dark Matter energy within his body!" Bak yelled, struggling to try and free himself from the cables.

"Then…!?"

"This is bad, Allen, Bella!" Johnny turned in the cables, staring at Allen and I with eyes full of desperation. "At this rate Alma Karma is going to become an Akuma!"

"That can't be…!" Allen exclaimed, both of us turning as a blinding white light was shot from Alma. The rays of light were way too powerful, resulting in the North American Branch, seeming to be destroyed from the inside out, large rocks and cables being shot away.

"Bella! Allen!" Johnny shouted distressed, my eyes widening at the realization.

_Destroyed… as in blowing up? Like a bomb going off?!_

I quickly turned on my heels, running over and grabbing onto Johnny's hand as we were all shot back from the immense force, pain prickling everywhere in my body. The blinding white light was too bright for me to see what happened to Allen.

"It's hot!"

"Th-this is bad!"

"It's huge!"

I screamed in pain as I began to feel burning hot pentacles, slowly taking form on my body. _This light is from the Akuma Virus._ I coughed uncomfortably and felt warm blood running down my temple, as a large rock flew by and left a deep scratch. _What do I do? What do I do?! What happens after this?! I-I don't remember! I only remember the overall plot, but not every little detailed attack that happens. _

My mind had decided to go blank and it slowly made me panic.

"St-stop Alma!"

Then, as if it couldn't get any worse, I felt something big and rock-hard hit the back of my head. I gasped from the sudden pain, my sight going dark and blurry before I finally lost my consciousness.

* * *

**3****rd**** POV:**

Breaking free and landing steadily on all four on the ground, Alma looked up, scanning the now completely wiped out North American Branch for a certain survivor.

"Yu, are you in there?"

"Now then," The Earl of Millennium grinned pleased, landing safely on the ground with Road on his shoulder, Sheryl on his left side, and Tyki on his right, holding a firm grip around the still writhing in pain Wisely. "The show has only just begun. Let me watch you writhe in pain, Fourteenth."

Taking one step after another forward, Alma gazed unimpressed down at the sound of crunching against his feet.

"Someone's there…" He mumbled, looking up from the ground again, the Akuma's eyes widening at the person approaching him.

Stepping out from the shadows was the familiar dark-haired exorcist, Kanda's one side of the face still healing from being infected by the Akuma Virus. The Japanese exorcist simply shot the surprised Alma a cold look.

* * *

**Bella's POV:**

I groaned in pain, coughing and spitting out saliva and whatever else had made it in my mouth, wiping away the dirt and dried drool on my chin with a gloved hand.

_Where is Johnny? Wasn't I holding onto him…?_

"Johnny…" Slowly I got up and into a sitting position from the ground, ignoring the agonizing pain shooting through my body whenever I moved the wrong muscle. "Are you alright…Johnny…?" I turned around to find Johnny lying behind me, the scientist slowly seeming to be gaining consciousness.

"B-Bella…?" He murmured, placing the broken glasses back on his nose, his eyes expressing confusion. "We… survived…?"

_That or we are already in heaven. _

_Not as cozy as I thought to be honest…_

"Apparently." I answered him, running my hands over the ground to find my fans, sighing as I felt the familiar contact of metal in my hand. "Are you alright?"

"Y-yeah… somehow… but how did we survive…?"

_Good question._

I looked up to find that a bunch of shield feathers were surrounding both Johnny and I, in a sort of bubble-like barrier. It immediately clicked, my mind making sense of what had happened, as I remembered a certain Third Exorcist having used them before on a mission. _Heh. Thanks Tokusa._ I grinned, cracking my neck and fingers to regain feeling to them.

"It seems like Tokusa had a last trick up his sleeve. He saved our butts from becoming human-barbeque."

Johnny looked surprised up from the ground, shifting his glasses a bit, and then gasped at the sight of the multiple small paper-shields. I started fumbling around with my earpiece, hoping it hadn't broken during the destruction of the American Branch. It made a few scratching and buzzing noises, and I smiled relieved, immediately using it to contact Allen.

"Hello? Allen? Allen, are you there?"

I heard a surprised gasp from the other end of the communication device. Then…

"BELLA!?"

"Ow!" I hissed, rubbing my ear from Allen's sudden outbreak.

"Bella?! You survived?! Are you okay?!" The boy continued, his voice sounding a bit high-pitched and cracking a few places during his sentence. _Is he crying…?_

"Yeah," I answered him, hearing a sigh of relief on the other end, "Johnny is here with me, he is alright too. It seems like Tokusa threw his shield out and protected us from the Akuma Virus." I looked around, relief washing over me at the sight of familiar figures moving around in the distance. "I think Reever, Bak and everybody else are alright too."

I heard Allen exclaim in relief, and then sniff a little after.

_Seriously…?_

"Aw~ are you crying Cotton ball?" I asked in mock, grinning at the picture of poor Allen so relieved that he ended up crying.

"I-I'm just glad you're alright!" Allen defended himself from the other line. I smiled, turning to give Johnny a thumbs-up, the young scientist smiling back in relief. With that settled and done, I forced myself up to a stand with a groan, the muscles in my legs shaking.

"Johnny, you stay here."

Johnny nodded, knowing fully well there was nothing he could say or do in a situation like this. Slowly, I let my eyes run over the destroyed Order, scanning it until I found two figures a little further ahead, facing one another and ready for battle. I immediately recognized the long, dark-haired exorcist as Kanda, his body having healed up into a perfect condition by now. His opponent had dark tattoos running and crisscrossing all over the chest, a long demon-like tail and a remarkable scar running along the bridge of his nose.

_Alma._

I took a few wary steps closer – leaving Johnny – my heart increasing its speed as I got closer and closer to the scene. Kanda finally seemed to notice me, shooting me one quick glance before turning back to look at Alma, his eyes cold and empty from any emotion.

I froze in shock from his look. His eyes, they were just so… not like him. It was frightening out of character for Kanda to have such cold, emotionless eyes, and it made an icy shiver run down my spine. I mean, it was not like he ever had the happy eyes of little Miss Sunshine, his eyes were always a bit irritated, cold or fed up… but they were never emotionless. They were never like _that._ It was almost as if his eyes were dead, like he just didn't give one care in the world anymore.

"I had a dream." Alma suddenly started, taking a step forward, his voice full of hatred.

I was still frozen in shock.

Hearing Alma's words, so full of hatred, and seeing Kanda's eyes, stripped from any sort of emotion – it made my heart writhe uncomfortably with pain. Those two, Kanda and Alma, they were _friends._ They depended on each other nine years ago – and now, they were ready to kill each other without a second thought. Now they were facing each other as enemies; Innocence versus Dark Matter.

"The reason that you betrayed me, it's clear now," Alma went on, his transformation taking its last toll. Tear-like dark markings were slowly forming under his eyes as the transformation completed.

This entire situation was just so _wrong_, and I ever so slowly found myself resenting the people who had done this to Alma and Kanda. I understood that not everybody stayed friends throughout their lives. I too had friends I had grown apart from during the years. But _this – _the friendship between Alma and Kanda – it had broken apart for an entirely different reason.

"I resented Yu for betraying me, and only me." Alma's hair snapped off, returning to the old, short haircut he had as a child, the dark color returning.

I swallowed hard, my body going numb.

_If it wasn't for the Order and their desperate attempts at making new exorcists…_

"Because Yu were alive, humans didn't mend their way." The boy tilted his head to the side, a sad, desperate expression in his eyes.

_If only Alma and Kanda had had a chance of growing up without the war and the Innocence backing them into a corner…_

"Because of Yu, I've become an Akuma."

_They wouldn't have to face each other as enemies…_

Alma swung his head to the opposite side, waiting for Kanda to respond, the newly created Akuma's eyes wide and dark.

_They could have still been friends._

"That's why I'll destroy you." Kanda unsheathed his Mugen from its holster, glaring back at Alma's dark smile, with cold determined eyes.

I felt my eyes dilate as Allen was suddenly heard, shouting out Tokusa's name, though his voice seemed so distant, like he was much further away from me than what I had thought.

_This is it._

It's happening now, Alma's rage was currently causing the cells in all of the Third Exorcists to mutate and create some sort of berserk, Akuma-like creature. The implant of Alma's cells caused them all to turn on us.

_And Lenalee is probably fighting off Goushi at this very moment._

The thought made my stomach turn into ice, a heavy and agonizing feeling of guilt for leaving her behind, knowing fully well this would happen, taking over and locking out everything else around me. _Maybe I shouldn't have left?_ Maybe it would have been better if I stayed with her, and helped her fight off the mutated Third Exorcist. Yes, Allen would then without a doubt awaken, allowing the Fourteenth to take over his body, but it didn't mean I couldn't have handled _that_ later. On the other hand, downright leaving Lenalee behind, was that really the right thing to do?

A loud scream from Alma snapped me out of my thoughts, and as I looked up, I found the fight between Kanda and Alma had begun, Alma shooting out a laser-like attack from his mouth, aiming it at Kanda. The dark-haired exorcist easily dodged it, running forward and activating his weapon. Alma jumped and Kanda followed right after. As they both clashed in the air, each of them raising their weapon to attack the other, it felt like my heart fell to the ground and it hit me why I left Lenalee and came here.

_It's so that I can help those two._

Seeing both of them striking out after one another, like there was no history, no past friendship, acting as if they were simply Exorcist and Akuma, sworn enemies that didn't need a reason for killing each other, made me feel _so_ sad inside. _It shouldn't be this way._ I _knew_ that neither Kanda nor Alma actually _wanted_ this; they didn't really want to fight. And they both deserved better than to be used by the Noah and the Order as bait and experiments. Yes, the awakening of the Fourteenth played a large role, but at the same time I wanted to help Kanda and Alma too. They deserved to have a last peaceful moment together, before hell broke loose once more. _That's _what I was here to help with. And _that's_ why I had to leave Lenalee behind. I was not sure whether it was the right thing to do, but _I _believed it was the right decision. And that's all that mattered right now.

It was like facing my own nightmare, my own personal fear. Two past friends facing each other, now empty shells with no emotions, simply doing what the war is expecting them to do as enemies. They used to be friends, but because of one slip-up, they were now on two different sides.

I wanted to help them.

I _needed _to help them.

Because the way they stood in front of each other, it scared me.

It scared me, because it was the exact image of what I feared might happen to Allen and me, if I couldn't save him in time.

If my plan failed, would I have to stand in the same situation? With Allen as my enemy, both of our eyes filled with cold hatred toward one another?

One thing was for sure. I would not let such a thing as different sides in the war get between the relationships I had with my friends. And I certainly would not let it get between Kanda and Alma's friendship either.

I _had_ to help them. With the knowledge of the plot that I possessed, it was the only right thing to do.

Not to mention, let's not forget the cool little detail of me basically getting the chance of screwing up the Earl's plans.

Yay!

He was probably going to have a personal grudge against me after this.

* * *

**A/N: I'm really sorry guys, I know I haven't been the best at updating my stories lately. Life has been hectic and I was hit with a terrible writer's block, so I kind of haven't written anything in a while. BUT now that school is over and I finally got my muse back for this story (thanks to the news of Katsura Hoshino bringing back D. Gray-Man this July – YESH!), I'll be able to update again more frequently.**

**Also, thank you all for the requested nicknames regarding what Tyki should call Bella in the future – you are all really creative. There was one particular nickname you all requested a lot, so unless something brilliant comes up, I think I'm going to use that.**


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